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THE HEROES 


OR 

GREEK FAIRY TALES FOR 
MY CHILDREN 


BY 

CHARLES KINGSLEY 
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ILLUSTRATIONS BY T. H. ROBINSON 




THE MERSHON COMPANY 


RAHWAY, N. J. 


NEW YORK 






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CONTENTS. 


Perseus. 

PART PAGS 

I. How Perseus and his mother came to Seriphos 1 

II. How Perseus vowed a rash vow 10 

III. How Perseus slew the Gorgon . „ 30 

IV. Plow Perseus came to the ASthiops 48 

V. How Perseus came home again . 71 

The Argonauts. 

I. How the Centaur trained the heroes on Pelion 83 

II. How Jason lost his sandal in Anauros 100 

III. How they built the ship Argo in Iolcos 118 

IV. How the Argonauts sailed to Colchis 126 

V. How the Argonauts were driven into the unknown 

sea 173 

VI. What was the end of the heroes c . . 222 

Theseus. 

I. How Theseus lifted the stone 231 

II. How Theseus slew the devourers of men 240 

III. How Theseus slew the Minotaur 288 

IV. How Theseus fell by his pride 298 








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STORY I— PERSEUS. 


PART I. 

HOW PERSEUS AND HIS MOTHER CAME TO 
SERIPHOS. 

Once upon a time there were two princes 
who were twins. Their names were Acri- 
sius and Proetus, and they lived in the 
pleasant vale of Argos, far away in Hellas. 
They had fruitful meadows and vineyards, 
sheep and oxen, great herds of horses 
feeding down in Lerna Fen, and all that 
men could need to make them blest ; and 
yet they were wretched, because they 
were jealous of each other. From the 
moment they were born they began to 


2 THE GREEK HEROES. 

quarrel ; and when they grew up, each 
tried to take away the other’s share of the 
kingdom, and keep all for himself. So, 
first Acrisius drove out Proetus; and he 
went across the seas, and brought home a 
foreign princess for his wife and foreign 
warriors to help him, who were called 
Cyclopes; and drove out Acrisius in his 
turn ; and then they fought a long while 
up and down the land, till the quarrel was 
settled ; and Acrisius took Argos and one 
half the land, and Proetus took Tiryns and 
the other half. And Proetus and his Cy- 
clopes built around Tiryns great walls of 
unhewn stone, which are standing to this 
day. 

But there came a prophet to that hard- 
hearted Acrisius, and prophesied against 
him, and said: “Because you have risen 
up against your own blood, your own 
blood shall rise up against you ; because 
you have sinned against your kindred, by 


PERSEUS. 


3 


your kindred you shall be punished. Your 
daughter Danae shall bear a son, and by 
that son’s hand you shall die. So the 
gods have ordained, and it will surely 
come to pass.” 

And at that, Acrisius was very much 
afraid; but he did not mend his ways. 
He had been cruel to his own family ; and, 
instead of repenting and being kind to 
them, he went on to be more cruel than 
ever; for he shut up his fair daughter 
Danae in a cavern underground, lined with 
brass, that no one might come near her. 
So he fancied himself more cunning than 
the gods ; but you will see presently 
whether he was able to escape them. 

Now it came to pass that in time Danae 
bore a son ; so beautiful a babe that any 
but king Acrisius would have had pity on 
it. But 7 he had no pity. For he took 
Danae and her babe down to the sea-shore, 
and put them into a great chest, and 


4 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


thrust them out to sea, for the winds and 
the waves to carry them whithersoever 
they would. 

The northwest wind blew freshly out of 
the blue mountains, and down the pleas- 
ant vale of Argos* and away and out to 
sea. And away out to sea before it, floated 
the mother and her babe, while all who 
watched them wept, save that cruel father, 
king Acrisius. 

So they floated on and on, and the 
chest danced up and down upon the bil- 
lows, and the baby slept under its mother’s 
breast ; but the poor mother could not 
sleep, but watched and wept, and she sang 
to her baby as they floated ; and the song 
which she sang you shall learn yourselves 
some day. 

And now they are past the last blue 
headland, and in the open sea ; and there 
is nothing round them but the waves, and 
the sky, and the wind. But the waves 


PERSEUS. 


5 


are gentle, and the sky is clear, and the 
breeze is tender and low ; for these are the 
days when Halcyone and Ceyx build their 
nests, and no storms ever ruffled the 
pleasant summer sea. 

And who were Halcyone and Ceyx? 
You shall hear while the chest floats on. 
Halcyone was a fairy maiden, the daughter 
of the beach and of the wind. And she 
loved a sailor boy, and married him ; and 
none on earth were so happy as they. 
But at last Ceyx was wrecked ; and before 
he could swim to the shore, the billows 
swallowed him up. And Halcyone saw 
him drowning, and leapt into the sea to 
him ; but in vain. Then the Immortals 
took pity on them both, and changed them 
into two fair sea-birds ; and now they build 
a floating nest every year, and sail up and 
down happily forever, upon the pleasant 
seas of Greece. 

So a night passed and a day : and a 


6 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


long day it was for Danae ; and another 
night and day beside, till Danae was faint 
with hunger and weeping, and yet no land 
appeared. And all the while the babe 
slept quietly; and at last poor Danae 
dropped her head and fell asleep likewise, 
with her cheek against her babe’s. 

After a while she awakened suddenly ; 
for the chest was jarring and grinding, 
- and the air was full of sound. She looked 
up, and over her head were mighty cliffs, 
all red in the setting sun, and around her 
rocks and breakers, and flying flakes of 
foam. She clasped her hands together, 
and shrieked aloud for help. And when 
she cried, help met her; for now there 
came over the rocks a tall and stately 
man, and looked down wondering upon 
poor Danae tossing about in the chest 
among the waves. 

He wore a rough cloak of frieze, and on 
his head a broad hat to shade his face ; in 


FERSEUS. 


7 


his hand he carried a trident for spearing 
fish, and over his shoulder was a casting- 
net ; but Danae could see that he was no 
common man by his stature, and his walk, 
and his flowing golden hair and beard; 
and by the two servants who came behind 
him, carrying baskets for his fish. But 
she had hardly time to look at him, before 
he had laid aside his trident, and leapt 
down the rocks, and thrown his casting 
net so surely over Danae and the chest, 
that he drew it, and her, and the baby, 
safe upon a ledge of rock. 

Then the fisherman took Danae by the 
hand, and lifted her out of the chest, and 
said ; — 

“ O, beautiful damsel, what strange 
chance has brought you to this island in 
so frail a ship ? Who are you, and whence ? 
Surely you are some king’s daughter ; 
and this boy has somewhat more than 
mortal.” 


8 THE GREEK HEROES. 

And as he spoke, he pointed to the babe ; 
for its face shone like the morning star. 

But Danae only held down her head, 
and sobbed out : — 

“ Tell me to what land I have come, un- 
happy that I am ; and among what men 
I have fallen ? ” 

And he said : “ This isle is called Seri- 
phos, and I am a Hellen, and dwell in it. 
I am the brother of Polydectes the king ; 
and men call me Dictys the netter, because 
I catch the fish of the shore.” 

Then Danae fell down at his feet, and 
embraced his knees, and cried : — 

“ Oh, Sir, have pity upon a stranger, 
whom a cruel doom has driven to your 
land ; and let me live in your house as a 
servant ; but treat me honorably, for I 
was once a king’s daughter, and this my 
boy (as you have truly said) is of no corm 
mon race. I will not be a charge to you, 
or eat the bread of idleness ; for T am more 


PERSEUS. 


9 


skilful in weaving and embroidery, than 
all the maidens of my land .’ 5 

And she was going on; but Dictys 
stopped her, and raised her up, and said : 

“My daughter, I am old, and my hairs 
are growing gray ; while I have no chil- 
dren to make my home cheerful. Come 
with me, then, and you shall be a daughter 
to me and to my wife, and this babe shall 
be our grandchild. For I fear the gods, 
and Show hospitality to all strangers; 
knowing that good deeds, like evil ones, 
always return to those who do them.” 

So Danae was comforted, and went home 
with Dictys the good fisherman, and was 
a daughter to him and to his wife, till 
fifteen years were past. 


PART II. 


HOW PERSEUS VOWED A RASH VOW. 

Fifteen years were past and gone, and 
the babe was now grown to be a tall lad 
and a sailor, and went many voyages after 
merchandise to the islands round. His 
mother called him Perseus : hut all the 
people in Seriphos said that he was not 
the son of mortal man, and called him the 
son of Zeus, the king of the Immortals. 
For though he was hut fifteen, he was 
taller hy a head than any man in the 
island ; and he was the most skilful of all 
in running and wrestling and boxing, and 
in throwing the quoit and the javelin, and' 
in rowing with the oar, and in playing on 
the harp, and in all which befits a man. 

IO 


PERSEUS. 


11 


And he was brave and truthful, gentle and 
courteous, for good old Dictys had trained 
him well ; and well it was for Perseus that 
he had done so. For now Danae and her 
son fell into great danger, and Perseus had 
need of all his wit to defend his mother 
and himself. 

I said that Dictys’s brother was Poly- 
dectes, king of the island. He was not a 
righteous man, like Dictys : but greedy, 
and cunning, and cruel. And when he 
saw fair Danae, he wanted to marry her. 
But she would not; for she did not love 
him, and cared for no one but her boy, 
and her boy’s father, whom she never hoped 
to see again. At last Polydectes became 
furious ; and while Perseus was away at 
sea, he took poor Danae away from Dictys, 
saying, “ If you will not be my wife, you 
shall be my slave.” So Danae was made 
a slave, and had to fetch water from the 
well, and grind in the mill, and perhaps 


12 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


was beaten, and wore a heavy chain, be- 
cause she would not marry that cruel king. 
But Perseus was far away over the seas in 
the isle of Samos, little thinking how his 
mother was languishing in grief. 

Now one day at Samos, while the ship 
was lading, Perseus wandered into a pleas- 
ant wood to get out of the sun, and sat 
down on the turf, and fell asleep. And as 
he slept, a strange dream came to him ; 
the strangest dream which he had ever had 
in his life. 

There came a lady to him through the 
wood, taller than he, or any mortal man : 
but beautiful exceedingly, with great gray 
eyes, clear and piercing, but strangely soft 
and mild. On her head was a helmet, and 
in her hand a spear. And over her shoul 
der, above her long blue robes, hung a 
goatskin, which bore up a mighty shield of 
brass, polished like a mirror. She stood 
and looked at him with her clear gray eyes ; 


PERSEUS. 


13 


and Perseus saw that her eyelids never 
moved, nor her eyeballs, but looked straight 
through and through him, and into his 
very heart, as if she could see all the se- 
crets of his soul, and knew all that he had 
ever thought or longed for since the day 
that he was born. And Perseus dropped 
his eyes, trembling and blushing, as the 
wonderful lady spoke. 

“ Perseus, you must do an errand for me.” 

“ Who are you, lady ? And how do you 
know my name ? ” 

“ I am Pallas Athene ; and I know the 
thoughts of all men’s hearts, and discern 
their manhood or their baseness. And 
from the souls of clay I turn away ; and 
they are blest, but not by me. They fatten 
at ease, like sheep in the pasture, and eat 
what they did not sow, like oxen in the 
stall. They grow and spread, like the 
gourd along the ground : but like the 
gourd, they give no shade to the traveler ; 


u 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


and when they are ripe death gathers 
them, and they go down unloved into hell, 
and their name vanishes out of the land. 

“But to the souls of fire I give more 
fire, and to those who are manful I give a 
might more than man’s. These are the 
heroes, the sons of the Immortals, who are 
blest, hut not like the souls of clay. For 
I drive them forth by strange paths, Per- 
seus, that they may fight the Titans and 
the monsters, the enemies of Gods and 
men. Through doubt and need, danger 
and battle, I drive them ; and some of them 
are slain in the flower of youth, no man 
knows when or where ; and some of them 
win noble names, and a fair and green old 
age ; but what will be their latter end I 
know not, and none, save Zeus, the father 
of Gods and men. Tell me now, Perseus, 
which of these two sorts of men seem to 
you more blest?” 

Then Perseus answered, boldly : “ Better 


PERSEUS. 


15 


to die in the flower of youth, on the 
chance of winning a noble name, than to 
live at ease like the sheep, and die unloved 
and unrenowned.” 

Then that strange lady laughed, and 
held up her brazen shield, and cried : “ See 
here, Perseus ; dare you face such a mon- 
ster as this, and slay it, that I may place 
its head upon this shield ?” 

And in the mirror of the shield there 
appeared a face, and as Perseus looked on 
it his blood ran cold. It was the face of 
a beautiful woman ; but her cheeks were 
pale as death, and her brows were knit 
with everlasting pain, and her lips were 
thin and bitter like a snake’s ; and instead 
of hair, vipers wreathed about her temples, 
and shot out their forked tongues ; while 
round her head were folded wings like an 
eagle’s, and upon her bosom claws of brass. 

And Perseus looked awhile, and then 
said : “ If there is any thing so fierce and 


16 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


foul on earth, it were a noble deed to kill 
it. Where can I find the monster ? ” 

Then the strange lady smiled again, and 
said : “ Not yet ; you are too young, and 
too unskilled ; for this is Medusa the Gor- 
gon, the mother of a monstrous brood. 
Return to your home, and do the work 
which waits there for you. You must 
play the man in that before I can think 
you worthy to go in search of the Gorgon.” 

Then Perseus would have spoken, but the 
strange lady vanished, and he awoke ; and 
behold, it was a dream. But day and 
night Perseus saw before him the face of 
that dreadful woman, with the vipers 
writhing round her head. 

So he returned home ; and when he came 
to Seriphos, the first thing which he heard 
was that his mother was a slave in the 
house of Polydectes. 

Grinding his teeth with rage, he went 
out, and away to the king’s palace and 



PERSEUS CAUGHT UP THE STONE HAND-MII.L. — P. 17 






PERSEUS. 


17 


through the men’s rooms, and the women’s 
rooms, and so through all the house, (for 
no one dared to stop him, so terrible and fair 
was he,) till he found his mother sitting on 
the floor, turning the stone hand-mill, and 
weeping as she turned it. And he lifted 
her up, and kissed her, and bade her follow 
him forth. But before they could pass out 
of the room, Polydectes came in, raging. 
And when Perseus saw him, he flew upon 
him as the mastiff flies on the boar. “Vil- 
lain and tyrant ! ” he cried ; “ is this your 
respect for the Gods, and thy mercy to 
strangers and widows ? You shall die ! ” 
And because he had no sword, he caught 
up the stone hand-mill, and he lifted it to 
dash out Polydectes’s brains. 

But his mother clung to him, shrieking, 
“ Oh, my son, we are strangers, and help- 
less in the land ; and if you kill the king, 
all the people will fall on us, and we shall 

both die. 1 ’ 

2 


13 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


Good Dictys, too, who had come in, 
entreated him. “ Remember that he is my 
brother. Remember how I have brought 
you up, and trained you as my own son, 
and spare him for my sake.” 

Then Perseus lowered his hand ; and 
Polydectes, who had been trembling all 
this while like a coward, because he knew 
that he was in the wrong, let Perseus and 
his mother pass. 

Perseus took his mother to the temple 
of Athene, and there the priestess made 
her one of the temple-sweepers ; for there 
they knew she would be safe, and not 
even Polydectes would dare to drag her 
away from the altar. And there Perseus, 
and the good Dictys, and his wife, came 
to visit her every day ; while Polydectes, 
not being able to get what he wanted by 
force, cast about in his wicked heart how 
he might get it by cunning. 

Now he was sure that he could never 


PERSEUS. 


19 


get back Danae as long as Perseus was in 
the island ; so he made a plot to rid him- 
self of him. And first he pretended to 
have forgiven Perseus, and to have forgot- 
ten Danae ; so that, for a while, all went 
as smoothly as ever. 

Next he proclaimed a great feast, and 
invited to it all the chiefs, and landowners, 
and the young men of the island, and 
among them Perseus, that they might all 
do him homage as their king, and eat of 
his banquet in his hall. 

On the appointed day they all came ; 
and, as the custom was then, each guest 
brought his present with him to the king : 
one a horse, another a shawl, or a ring, or 
a sword ; and those who had nothing better 
brought a basket of grapes, or of game ; 
but Perseus brought nothing, for he had 
nothing to bring, being but a poor sailor-lad. 

He was ashamed, however, to go into 
the king’s presence without his gift, and 


20 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


he was too proud to ask Dictys to lend 
him one. So he stood at the door sorrow- 
fully, watching the rich men go in ; and 
his face grew very red as they pointed at 
him, and smiled, and whispered, “ What 
has that foundling to give ? ” 

Now, this was what Polydectes wanted ; 
and as soon as he heard that Perseus 
stood without, he hade them bring him in, 
and asked him scornfully before them all, 
— Am I not your king, Perseus, and have 
I not invited you to my feast ? Where is 
your present then ? ” 

Perseus blushed and stammered, while 
all the proud men round laughed, and some 
of them began jeering him openly. “ This 
fellow was thrown ashore here like a piece 
of weed or driftwood, and yet he is too 
proud to bring a gift to the king.” 

“ And though he does not know who his 
father is, he is vain enough to let the old 
women call him the son of Zeus.” 


PERSEUS. 


21 


And so forth, till poor Perseus grew mad 
with shame, and hardly knowing what he 
said, cried out, — “ A present ? who are you 
who talk of presents? See if I do not 
bring a nobler one than all of yours to- 
gether ! ” 

So he said, boasting ; and yet he felt in 
his heart that he was braver than all those 
scoffers, and more able to do some glorious 
deed. 

“ Hear him ! Hear the boaster ! What 
is it to be ?” cried they all, laughing louder 
than ever. 

Then his dream at Samos came into his 
mind, and he cried aloud, “The head of 
the Gorgon.” 

He was half afraid after he had said the 
words ; for all laughed louder than ever, 
and Polydectes loudest of all. 

“You have promised to bring me the 
Gorgon’s head ? Then never appear again 
in this island without it. Go ! ” 


22 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


Perseus ground his teeth with rage, for 
he saw that he had fallen into a trap ; but 
his promise lay upon him, and he went 
out without a word. 

Down to the cliffs he went, and looked 
across the broad blue sea ; and he wondered 
if his dream were true, and prayed in the 
bitterness'of his soul. 

“Pallas Athene, was my dream true? 
and shall I slay the Gorgon ? If thou didst 
really show me her face, let me not come 
to shame as a liar and boastful. Rashly 
and angrily I promised : but cunningly 
and patiently will I perform.” 

But there was no answer, nor sign; 
neither thunder or any appearance ; not 
even a cloud in the sky. 

And three times Perseus called weeping. 
“ Rashly and angrily I promised : but cun- 
ningly and patiently will I perform.” 

Then he saw afar off above the. sea a 
small white cloud, as bright as silver. And 


PERSEUS. 


23 


it came on, nearer and nearer, till its 
brightness dazzled his eyes. 

Perseus wondered at that strange cloud, 
for there was no other cloud all round the 
sky ; and he trembled as it touched the 
cliff below. And as it touched, it broke, 
and parted, and within it appeared Pallas 
Athene, as he had seen her at Samos in 
his dream, and beside her a young man 
more light-limbed than the stag, whose 
eyes were like sparks of fire. By his side 
was a cimiter of diamond, all of one clear 
precious stone, and on his feet were golden 
sandals, from the heels of which grew 
living wings. 

They looked upon Perseus keenly, and 
yet they never moved their eyes ; and 
they came up the cliffs towards him more 
swiftly than the sea-gull, and yet they 
never moved their feet, nor did the breeze 
stir the robes about their limbs ; only the 
wings of the youth’s sandals quivered, like 


24 THE GREEK HEROES. 

a hawk’s when he hangs above the cliff. 
And Perseus fell down and worshiped, 
for he knew that they were more than 
man. 

But Athene stood before him and spoke 
gently, and bid him have no fear. Then — 

“ Perseus,” she said, “ he who overcomes 
in one trial merits thereby a sharper trial 
still. You have braved Polydectes, and 
done manfully. Dare you brave Medusa 
the Gorgon ? ” 

And Perseus said, “ Try me ; for since 
you spoke to me in Samos, a new soul 
has come into my breast, and I should be 
ashamed not to dare any thing which I 
can do. Show me, then, how I can do 
this.” 

“ Perseus,” said Athene, “ Think well be- 
fore you attempt ; for this deed requires- a 
seven years 1 journey, in which you cannot 
repent or turn back, nor escape; but if 
your heart fails you, you must die in the 


PERSEUS. 


25 


unshapen land, where no man will ever 
And yonr bones.” 

“ Better so than live here, useless and 
despised,” said Perseus. “ Tell me, then, 
oh tell me, fair and wise Goddess, of your 
great kindness and condescension, how I 
can do but this one thing, and then, if 
need be, die ! ” 

Then Athene smiled and said, 

“Be patient, and listen; for if you for- 
get my words, you will indeed die. You 
must go northward to the country of the 
Hyperboreans, who live beyond the pole, 
as the sources of the cold north wind ; till 
you find the three Gray Sisters, who have 
but one eye and one tooth between them. 
You must ask them the way to the 
Nymphs, the daughters of the Evening 
Star, wdio dance about the golden tree, in 
the Atlantic island of the west. They will 
tell you the way to the Gorgon, that you 
may slay her, my enemy, the mother of 


26 THE GREEK HEROES. 

monstrous beasts. Once she was a maiden 
as beautiful as morn, till in her pride she 
sinned a sin at which the sun hid his face ; 
and from that day her hair was turned to 
vipers, and her hands tp eagle’s claws ; and 
her heart was filled with shame and rage, 
and her lips with bitter venom ; and her 
eyes became so terrible that whosoever 
looks on them is turned to stone ; and her 
children are the winged horse, and the 
giant of the golden sword ; and her grand- 
children are Echidna the witch-adder, and 
Geryon the three-headed tyrant, who feeds 
his herds besides the herds of hell. So she 
became the sister of the Gorgons, Stheino 
and Euryte the abhorred, the daughters of 
the Queen of the Sea. Touch them not, 
for they are immortal ; but bring me only 
Medusa’s head.” 

“ And I will bring it ! ” said Perseus ; 
“ but how am I to escape her eyes ? Will 
she not freeze me too into stone ? ” 


PERSEUS. 


27 


“You shall take this polished shield,” 
said Athene ; “ and when you come near 
her look not at her herself, but at her im- 
age in the brass ; so you may strike her 
safely. And when you have struck off her 
head, wrap it, with your face turned away, 
in the folds of the goat-skin on which the 
shield hangs, the hide of Amaltheie, the 
nurse of the ^Egis-holder. So you will 
bring it safely back to me, and win to 
yourself renown and a place among the 
heroes who feast with the Immortals upon 
the peak where no winds blow.” 

Then Perseus said, “ I will go, though I 
die in going. But how shall I cross the 
seas without a ship ? And who will show 
me my way ? And when I find her, how 
shall I slay her, if her scales be iron and 
brass ? ” 

Then the young man spoke : “ These 
sandals of mine will bear you across the 
seas, and over hill and dale like a bird, as 


28 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


they bear me all day long ; for I am 
Hermes, the far-famed Argus-slayer, the 
messenger of the Immortals who dwell on 
Olympus.” 

Then Perseus fell down and worshiped, 
while the young man spoke again. 

“ The sandals themselves will guide you 
on the road, for they are divine and can- 
not stray ; and this sword itself, the 
Argus-slayer, will kill her, for it is divine, 
and needs no second stroke. Arise, and 
gird them on, and go forth.” 

So Perseus arose, and girded on the 
sandals and the sword. 

And Athene cried, “ Now leap from the 
cliff, and be gone.” 

But Perseus lingered. 

“ May I not bid farewell to my mother 
and to Dictys? And may I not offer 
burnt-offerings to you, and to Hermes, the 
far-famed Argus-slayer, and to Father Zeus 
above.” 


PERSEUS. 


29 


“You shall not bid farewell to your 
mother, lest your heart relent at her weep- 
ing. I will comfort her and Dictys until 
you return in peace. Nor shall you 
offer burnt-offerings to the Olympians ; 
for your offering shall be Medusa’s head. 
Leap, and trust in the armor of the Im- 
mortals.” 

Then Perseus looked down the cliff and 
shuddered ; but he was ashamed to show 
his dread. Then he thought of Medusa 
and the renown before him, and he leaped 
into the empty air. 

And behold, instead of falling he floated, 
and stood, and ran along the sky. He 
looked back, but Athene had vanished, 
and Hermes ; and the sandals led him on 
northward ever, like a crane who follows 
the spring toward the Ister fens. 


PART IIL 


HOW PERSEUS SLEW THE GORGON. 

So Perseus started on his journey, going 
dry-shod over land and sea ; and his heart 
was high and joyful, for the winged san- 
dals bore him each day a seven days 1 
journey. 

And he went by Cythnus, and by Ceos, 
and the pleasant Cyclades to Attica ; and 
past Athens, and Thebes, and the Copaic 
lake, and up the vale of Cephissus, and 
past the peaks of (Eta and Pindus, and 
over the rich Thessalian plains, till the 
sunny hills of Greece were behind him, 
and before him were the wilds of the 
north. Then he passed the Thracian moun- 
tains, and many a barbarous tribe, Paeons 

and Dardans and Triballi, till he came to 
3 ° 


PERSEUS. 


31 


the Tster stream, and the dreary Scythian 
plains. And he walked across the Ister 
dry-shod, and away through the moors and 
fens, day and night toward the bleak 
northwest, turning neither to the right 
hand nor the left, till he came to the 
Unshapen Land, and the place which has 
no name. 

And seven days he walked through it, 
on a path which few can tell ; for those 
who have trodden it like least to speak 
of it, and those who go there again in 
dreams are glad enough when they awake ; 
till he came to the edge of the everlasting 
night, where the air was full of feathers, 
and the soil was hard with ice ; and there 
at last he found the three Gray Sisters, 
by the shore of the freezing sea, nodding 
upon a white log of driftwood, beneath 
the cold white winter moon; and they 
chanted a low song together, “ Why the 
old times were better than the new.” 


32 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


There was no living thing around them, 
not a fly, not a moss upon the rocks. 
Neither seal nor sea-gull dare come near, 
lest the ice should clutch them in its 
claws. The surge broke up in foam, but 
it fell again in flakes of snow; and it 
frosted the hair of the three Gray Sisters, 
and the bones in the ice-cliff above their 
heads. They passed the eye from one to 
the other, but for all that they could not 
see ; and they passed the tooth from one 
to the other, but for all that they could 
not eat ; and they sat in the full glare of 
the moon, but they were none the warmer 
for her beams. And Perseus pitied the 
three Gray Sisters ; but they did not pity 
themselves. 

So he said, “ Oh venerable mothers, wis- 
dom is the daughter of old age. You 
therefore should know many things. Tell 
me, if you can, the path to the Gorgon. 1 ’ 

Then one cried, “Who is this who re- 


PERSEUS. 


33 


proaches us with old age ? ” And another, 

This is the voice of one of the children 
of men. 1 ’ 

And he, “ I do not reproach, but honor 
your old age, and I am one of the sons of 
men and of the heroes. The rulers of 
Olympus have sent me to you to ask the 
way to the Gorgon.” 

Then one — “ There are new rulers in 
Olympus, and all new things are bad.” 
And another — “ We hate your rulers, and 
the heroes, and all the children of men. 
We are the kindred of the Titans, and the 
Giants, and the Gorgons, and the ancient 
monsters of the deep.” And another — 
“ Who is this rash and insolent man, who 
pushes unbidden into our world ? ” And 
the first — “ There never was such a world 
as ours, nor will be ; if we let him see it, 
he will spoil it all.” 

Then one cried, “ Give me the eye, that 
I may see him ; ” and another, “ Give me 


34 : 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


the tooth that I may bite him.” But Per- 
seus, when he saw that they were foolish 
and proud, and did not love the children 
of men, left off pitying them, and said to 
himself, “Hungry men must needs be 
hasty ; if I stay making many words here. 
I shall be starved.” Then he stepped close 
to them, and watched till they passed the 
eye from hand to hand. And as they 
groped about between themselves, he held 
out his own hand gently, till one of them 
put the eye into it, fancying that it was 
the hand of her sister. Then he sprang 
back, and laughed, and cried — 

“Cruel and proud old women, I have 
your eye ; and I will throw it into the sea, 
unless you tell me the path to the Gorgon, 
and swear to me that you tell me right.” 

Then they wept, and chattered, and 
scolded ; but in vain. They were forced to 
tell the truth, though when they told it, 
Perseus could hardly make out the road. 









mm 


■itr 


mwm 


wm 

Tifpk 1 ^ 

’’kJlffi’ffitit. 


MSSS&j 


PERSEUS S TEPPED CLOSE TO 'J HEM. — P. 34 




PERSEUS. 


35 


“ You must go,” they said, “ foolish boy, 
to the southward, into the ugly glare of 
the sun, till you come to Atlas the Giant, 
who holds the heaven and the earth 
apart. 

And you must ask his daughters, the 
Hesperides, who are young and foolish like 
yourself. And now give us back our eye ; 
for we have forgotten all the rest.” 

So Perseus gave them back their eye ; 
but instead of using it, they nodded and 
fell fast asleep, and were turned into 
blocks of ice, till the tide came up and 
washed them all away. And now they 
float up and down like icebergs forever, 
weeping whenever they meet the sunshine, 
and the fruitful summer, and the warm 
south wind, which fill young hearts with 

joy. 

But Perseus leaped away to the south- 
ward, leaving the snow and the ice be- 
hind ; past the isle of the Hyperboreans, 


36 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


and the tin isles, and the long Iberian 
shore ; while the sun rose higher day by 
day upon a bright blue summer sea. 
And the terns and the sea-gulls swept 
laughing round his head, and called 
to him to stop and play, and the dolphins 
gamboled up as he passed, and offered to 
carry him on their backs. And all night 
long the sea-nymphs sang sweetly, and the 
Tritons blew upon their conchs, as they 
played round Galataea their queen, in her 
car of pearled shells. Day by day the sun 
rose higher, and leaped more swiftly into 
the sea at night, and more swiftly out of 
the sea at dawn ; while Perseus skimmed 
over the billows like a sea-gull, and his feet 
were never wetted ; and leapt on from wave 
to wave, and his limbs were never weary, 
till he saw far away a mighty mountain, 
all rose-red in the setting sun. Its feet 
were wrapped in forests, and its head in 
wreaths of cloud ; and Perseus knew that 


PERSEUS. 37 

it was Atlas, who holds the heavens and 
the earth apart. 

He came to the mountain, and leapt on 
shore, and wandered upward among pleas- 
ant valleys and waterfalls, and tall trees 
and strange ferns and flowers ; but there 
was no smoke rising from any glen, nor 
house nor sign of man. 

At last he heard sweet voices singing ; 
and he guessed that he was come to the 
garden of the Nymphs, the daughters of 
the Evening Star. 

They sang like nightingales among the 
thickets, and Perseus stopped to hear their 
song ; but the words which they spoke he 
could not understand ; no, nor no man 
after him for many a hundred years. So 
he stepped forward and saw them dancing, 
hand in hand around the charmed tree, 
which bent under its golden fruit; and 
round the tree-foot was coiled the dragon, 
old Ladon the sleepless snake, who lies 


38 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


there forever, listening to the song of the 
maidens, blinking and watching with dry 
bright eyes. 

Then Perseus stopped, not because he 
feared the dragon,' but because he was 
bashful before those fair maids ; but when 
they saw him, they too stopped, and called 
to him with trembling voices, — 

“ Who are you ? Are you Heracles the 
mighty, who will come to rob our garden, 
and carry off our golden fruit?” And he 
answered, 

“ I am not Heracles the mighty, and I 
want none of your golden fruit. Tell me, 
fair nymphs, the way which leads to the 
Gorgon, that I may go on my way and 
slay her.” 

“ Not yet, not yet, fair boy ; come dance 
with us around the tree, in the garden 
which knows no winter, the home of the 
south wind and the sun. Come hither 
and play with us awhile ; we have danced 


PERSEUS. 


39 


alone here for a thousand years, and our 
hearts are weary with longing for a play- 
fellow. So come, come, come ! ” 

“ I cannot dance with you, fair maidens, 
for I must do the errand of the Immortals. 
So tell me the way to the Gorgon, lest I 
wander and perish in the waves.” 

Then they sighed and wept ; and an- 
swered : — 

“ The Gorgon ! she will freeze you into 
stone.” 

“ It is better to die like a hero than to 
live like an ox in a stall. The Immortals 
have lent me weapons, and they will give 
me wit to use them.” 

Then they sighed again and answered : 
“ Fair boy,, if you are bent on your own 
ruin, be it so. We know not the way to 
the Gorgon ; but we will ask the giant 
Atlas, above upon the mountain peak, the 
brother of our father, the silver Evening 
Star. He sits aloft, and sees across the 


40 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


ocean, and far away into the Unshapen 
Land.” 

So they went up the mountain to Atlas, 
their uncle, and Perseus went up with 
them. And they found the giant kneel- 
ing, as he held the heavens and the earth 
apart. 

They asked him, and he answered 
mildly, pointing to the sea-board with his 
mighty hand: “I can see the Gorgons 
lying on an island far away, but this 
youth can never come near them, unless 
he has the hat of darkness, which who- 
soever wears cannot be seen.” 

Then cried Perseus, “ Where is that hat, 
that I may find it ? ” 

But the giant smiled. “ No living mor- 
tal can find that hat, for it lies in the 
depths of Hades, in the regions of the 
dead. But my nieces are immortal, and 
they shall fetch it for you, if you will 
promise me one thing and keep your faith.” 


PERSEUS. 


41 


Then Perseus promised; and the giant 
said : “ When you come back with the 
head of Medusa, you shall show me the 
beautiful horror; that I may loose my 
feeling and my breathing, and become a 
stone forever ; for it is weary labor for 
me to hold the heavens and the earth 
apart.” 

Then Perseus promised ; and the eldest 
of the nymphs went down, and into a 
dark cavern among the cliffs, out of which 
came smoke and thunder, for it was one 
of the mouths of Hell. 

And Perseus and the nymphs sat down 
seven days, and waited trembling, till the 
nymph came up again ; and her face was 
pale, and her eyes dazzled with the light, 
for she had been long in the dreary dark- 
ness; but in her hand was the magic 
hat. 

Then all the nymphs kissed Perseus 
and wept over him a long while ; but he 


42 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


was only impatient to be gone. And at 
last they put the hat upon his head, and 
he vanished out of their sight. 

But Perseus went on boldly, past many 
an ugly sight, far away into the heart of 
the Unshapen Land, beyond the streams 
of Ocean, to the isles where no ship cruises, 
where is neither night nor day, where 
nothing is in its right place, and nothing 
has a name ; till he heard the rustle of 
the Gorgons’ wing, and saw the glitter 
of their brazen talons ; and then he knew 
that it was time to halt, lest Medusa 
should freeze him into stone. 

He thought awhile with himself, and 
remembered Athene’s words. He rose 
aloft into the air, and held the mirror of 
the shield above his head, and looked up 
into it that he might see all that was 
below him. 

And he saw the three Gorgons sleeping, 
as huge as elephants. He knew that they 


PERSEUS. 


43 


could not see him, because the hat of dark- 
ness hid him ; and yet he trembled as he 
sank down near them, so terrible were 
those brazen claws. 

Two of the Gorgons were foul as swine, 
and lay sleeping heavily, as swine sleep, 
with their mighty wings outspread ; but 
Medusa tossed to and fro restlessly, and as 
she tossed, Perseus pitied her, she looked 
so fair and sad. Her plumage was like 
the rainbow, and her face was like the 
face of a nymph, only her eyebrows were 
knit, and her lips clenched, with everlast- 
ing care and pain ; and her long neck 
gleamed so white in the mirror, that Per- 
seus had not the heart to strike, and said : 
“ Ah, that it had been either of her sis- 
ters ! ” 

But as he looked, from among her 
tresses the vipers heads awoke, and peeped 
up with their bright dry eyes, and showed 
their fangs, and hissed; and Medusa, as 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


44 

she tossed, threw back her wings, and 
showed her brazen claws ; and Perseus saw 
that, for all her beauty, she was as foul 
and venomous as the rest. 

Then he came down and stepped to 
her boldly, and looked steadfastly on his 
mirror, and struck with Herpe stoutly 
once ; and he did not need to strike 
again. 

Then he wrapped the head in the goat- 
skin, turning away his eyes, and sprang 
into the air aloft, faster than he ever 
sprang before. 

For Medusa’s wings and talons rattled 
as she sank dead upon the rocks; and 
her two foul sisters woke, and saw her 
lying dead. 

Into the air they sprang yelling, and 
looked for him who had done the deed. 
Thrice they swung round and round, like 
hawks who beat for a partridge ; and thrice 
they snuffed round and round, like hounds 



PERSEUS SPRANG INTO THE AIR ALOFT. — P. 44 









« 
























































PERSEUS. 


45 


who draw upon a deer. At last they 
struck upon the scent of the blood, and 
they checked for a moment to make sure ; 
and then on they rushed with a fearful 
howl, while the wind rattled hoarse in 
their wings. 

On they rushed, sweeping and flapping, 
like eagles after a hare; and Perseus’s 
blood ran cold, for all his courage as he 
saw them come howling on his track ; and 
he cried : “ Bear me well, now, brave san- 
dals, for the hounds of death are at my 
heels ! ” 

And well the brave sandals bore him, 
aloft through cloud and sunshine, across 
the shoreless sea; and fast followed the 
hounds of Death, as the roar of their wings 
came down the wind. But the roar came 
down fainter and fainter, and the howl of 
their voices died away ; for the sandals 
were too swift, even for Gorgons, and by 
nightfall they were far behind, two black 


46 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


specks in the southern sky, till the sun 
sank and he saw them no more. 

Then he came again to Atlas, and the 

garden of the Nymphs ; and when the 

\ 

giant heard him coming, he groaned, and 
said : “ Fulfil thy promise to me.” Then 
Perseus held up to him the Gorgon’s head 
and he had rest from all his toil ; for he 
became a crag of stone, which sleeps for- 
ever far above the clouds. 

Then he thanked the Nymphs, and 
asked them: “By what road shall I go 
homeward again, for I wandered far round 
in coming hither ! ” 

And they wept and cried: “Go home 
no more, but stay and play with us, the 
lonely maidens, who dwell forever far 
away from gods and men.” 

But he refused, and they told him his 
road and said : “ Take with you this magic 
fruit, which, if you eat once, you will not 
hunger for seven days. For you must go 


PERSEUS. 47 

eastward and eastward ever, over the dole- 
ful Lybian shore, which Poseidon gave to 
Father Zeus, when he hurst open the Bos- 
phorus and the Hellespont, and drowned 
the fair Lectonian land. And Zeus took 
that land in exchange, a fair bargain, much 
bad ground for a little good, and to this 
day it lies waste and desert, with shingle, 
and jock, and sand.” 

Then they kissed Perseus, and wept over 
him, and he leapt down the mountain, and 
went on, lessening and lessening like a 
sea-gull, away and out to sea. 


PART IV. 


HOW PERSEUS CAME TO THE ^THIOPS. 

So Perseus flitted onward to the north- 
east over many a league of sea, till he 
came to the rolling sand-hills, and the 
dreary Lybian shore. 

And he flitted on across the desert, 
over rock-ledges, and banks of shingle, 
and level wastes of sand, and shell-drifts 
bleaching in the sunshine, and the skel- 
etons of great sea-monsters, and dead 
bones of ancient giants, strewn up and 
down upon the old sea-floor. And as he 
went, the blood-drops fell to the earth 
from the Gorgon’s head, and became 
poisonous asps and adders, which breed 
in the desert to this day. 


PERSEUS. 


49 


Over the sands he went, he never knew 
how far or how long, feeding on the fruit 
which the Nymphs had given him, till he 
saw the hills of the Psylli, and the Dwarfs 
who fought with cranes. Their spears 
were of reeds and rushes, and their houses 
of the egg-shells of the cranes ; and Per- 
seus laughed, and went his way to the 
northeast, hoping all day long to see the 
blue Mediterranean sparkling, that he 
might fly across it to his home. 

But now came down a mighty wind, 
and swept him back southward toward the 
desert. All day long he strove against it ; 
but even the winged sandals could not 
prevail. So he was forced to float down 
the wind all night ; and when the morn- 
ing dawned there was nothing to be seen, 
save the same old hateful waste of sand. 

And out of the north the sand-storms 
rushed upon him, blood-red pillars and 

wreaths, blotting out the noonday sun ; 

4 


50 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


and Perseus fled before them, lest he 
should be choked by the burning dust. 
At last the gale fell calm, and he tried to 
go northward again ; but again came 
down the sand-storms, and swept him 
back into the waste, and then all was 
calm and cloudless as before. Seven days 
he strove against the storms, and seven 
days he was driven back, till he was spent 
with thirst and hunger, and his tongue 
clove to the roof of his mouth. Here and 
there he fancied that he saw a fair lake, 
and the sunbeams shining on the water ; 
but when he came to it it vanished at his 
feet, and there was nought but burning 
sand. And if he had not been of the race 
of the Immortals, he would have perished 
in the waste ; but his life was strong 
within him, because it was more than 
man’s. 

Then he cried to Athene, and said, — 

“ Oh, fair and pure, if thou hearest me, 


PERSEUS, 


51 


wilt thou leave me here to die of drought ? 
I have brought thee the Gorgon’s head at 
thy bidding, and hitherto thou hast pros- 
pered my journey; dost thou desert me 
at the last ? Else why will not these im- 
mortal sandals prevail, even against the 
desert storms ? Shall I never see my 
mother more, and the blue ripple round 
Seriphos, and the sunny hills of Hellas ? ” 

So he prayed ; and after he had prayed 
there was a great silence. 

The heaven was still above his head, and 
the sand was still beneath his feet; and 
Perseus looked up, but there was nothing 
but the blinding sun in the blinding blue ; 
and round him, but there was nothing but 
the blinding sand. 

And Perseus stood still awhile, and 
waited, and said— “ Surely I am not here 
without the will of the Immortals, for 
Athene will not lie. Were not these san- 
dals to lead me in the right road ? Then 


52 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


the road in which I have tried to go must 
be a wrong road.” 

Then suddenly his ears were opened, 
and he heard the sound of running 
water. 

And at that his heart was lifted up, 
though he scarcely dare believe his ears ; 
and weary as he was, he hurried forward, 
though he could scarcely stand upright; 
and within a bowshot of him was a glen in 
the sand, and marble rocks, and date-trees, 
and a lawn of gay green grass. And 
through the lawn a streamlet sparkled 
and wandered out beyond the trees, and 
Vanished in the sand. 

The water trickled among the rocks, and 
a pleasant breeze rustled in the dry date- 
branches; and Perseus laughed for joy, 
and leapt down the cliff, and drank of the 
cool water, and ate of the dates, and slept 
upon the turf, and leapt up and went for- 
ward again: but not toward the north 


PERSEUS. 


53 


this time ; for he said — “ Surely Athene has 
sent me hither, and will not have me go 
homeward yet. What if there be another 
noble deed to be done, before I see the 
sunny hills of Hellas ? ” 

So he went east, and east forever, by 
fresh oases and fountains, date-palms, and 
lawns of grass, till he saw before him a 
mighty mountain- wall, all rose-red in the 
setting sun. 

Then he towered in the air like an 
eagle, for his limbs were strong again ; and 
he flew all night across the mountain till 
the day began to dawn, and rosy-fingered 
Eos came blushing up the sky. And then, 
behold, beneath him was the long green 
garden of Egypt, and the shining stream 
of Nile. 

And he saw cities walled up to heaven, 
and temples, and obelisks, and pyramids, 
and giant Gods of stone. And he came 
down amid fields of barley, and flax, and 


54 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


millet, and clambering gourds ; and saw the 
people coming out of the gates of a great 
city, and setting to work, each in his 
place, among the watercourses, parting the 
streams among the plants cunningly with 
their feet, according to the wisdom of the 
Egyptians. But when they saw him they 
all stopped their work, and gathered round 
him, and cried, — 

“ Who art thou, fair youth ? and what 
bearest thou beneath thy goat-skin there ? 
Surely thou art one of the Immortals ; for 
thy skin is white like ivory, and ours is 
red like clay. Thy hair is like threads of 
gold, and ours is black and curled. Surely 
thou art one of the Immortals ; ” — and they 
would have worshiped him then and 
there : but Perseus said, — 

“ I am not one of the Immortals ; but I 
am a hero of the Hellens. And I have 
slain the Gorgon in the wilderness, and 
bear her head with me. Give me food, 


PERSEUS. 


55 


therefore, that I may go forward and finish 
my work.” 

Then they gave him food, and fruit, and 
wine ; hut they would not let him go. 
And when the news came into the city 
that the Gorgon was slain, the priests came 
out to meet him, and the maidens, with 
songs and dances, and timbrels and harps ; 
and they would have brought him to their 
temple and to their king ; but Perseus put 
on the hat of darkness, and vanished away 
out of their sight. 

Therefore the Egyptians looked long for 
his return, but in vain, and worshiped 
him as a hero, and made a statue of him 
in Chemmis, which stood for many a hun- 
dred years ; and they said that he appeared 
to them at times, with sandals a cubic 
long ; and that whenever he appeared the 
season was fruitful, and the Nile rose high 
that year. 

Then Perseus went to the eastward, 


56 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


along the Bed Sea shore ; and then, because 
he was afraid to go into the Arabian 
deserts, he turned northward once more, 
and this time no storm hindered him. 

He went past the Isthmus, and Mount 
Casius, and the vast Serbonian bog, and 
up the shore of Palestine, where the dark- 
faced iEthiops dwelt. 

He flew on past pleasant hills and val- 
leys, like Argos itself, or Lacedaemon, or 
the fair Yale of Tempe. But the lowlands 
were all drowned by floods,* and the high- 
lands blasted by fire, and the hills heaved 
like a bubbling cauldron, before the wrath 
of King Poseidon, the shaker of the 
earth. 

And Perseus feared to go inland, but 
flew along the shore above the sea ; and he 
went on all the day, and the sky was black 
with smoke ; and he went on all the night, 
and the sky was red with flame. 

And at the dawn of day he looked to- 


PERSEUS. 


57 


ward the cliffs; and at the water’s edge 
under a black rock, he saw a white image 
stand. 

“ This,” thought he, “ must surely be the 
statue of some sea-God ; I will go near and 
see what kind of Gods these barbarians 
worship.” 

So he came near ; but when he came, it 
was no statue, but a maiden of flesh and 
blood ; for he could see her tresses stream- 
ing in the breeze ; and as he came closer 
still, he could see how she shrank and 
shivered, when the waves sprinkled her 
with cold salt spray. Her arms were 
spread above her head, and fastened to the 
rock with chains of brass ; and her head 
drooped on her bosom, either with sleep, 
or weariness, or grief. But now and then 
she looked up and wailed, and called her 
mother ; yet she did not see Perseus, for 
the cap of darkness was on his head. 

Full of pity and indignation Perseus 


58 


THE GREEK HEROES, 


drew near and looked upon the maid. 
Her cheeks were darker than his were, and 
her hair was blue-black like a hyacinth ; 
but Perseus thought — “ I have never seen 
so beautiful a maiden ; no, not in all our 
Isles. Surely, she is a king’s daughter. 
Do barbarians treat their king’s daughters 
thus? She is too fair, at least to have 
done any wrong. I will speak to her.” 

And lifting the hat from his head, he 
flashed into her sight. She shrieked with 
terror, and tried to hide her face with her 
hair, for she could not with her hands; 
but Perseus cried, — 

“ Do not fear me, fair one ; I am a 
Hellen, and no barbarian. What cruel 
men have bound you ? But first I will set 
you free.” 

And he tore at the fetters; but they 
were too strong for him ; while the maiden 
cried, — 

“ Touch me not ; I am accursed, devoted 


PERSEUS. 


50 


as a victim to the sea-Gods. They will 
slay you if you dare to set me free.” 

“ Let them try,” said Perseus ; and draw- 
ing Herpe from his thigh, he cut through 
the brass as if it had been flax. 

“Now,” he said, “you belong to me, and 
not to these sea-Gods, whosoever they may 
be ! ” But she only called the more on her 
mother. 

“Why call on your mother? She can 
be no mother to have left you here. If a 
bird is dropped out of the nest, it belongs 
to the man who picks it up. If a jewel 
is cast by the wayside, it is his who dare 
win it and wear it, as I will win you and 
will wear you. I know now why Pallas 
Athene sent me hither. She sent me to 
gain a prize worth all my toil, and more.” 

And he clasped her in his arms, and 
cried — “Where are these sea-Gods, cruel 
and unjust, who doom fair maids to death ? 
I carry the weapons of Immortals. Let 


60 THE GREEK HEROES. 

them measure their strength against mine ! 
But tell me, maiden, who you are, and 
what dark fate brought you here.” 

And she answered, weeping — 

“ I am the daughter of Cepheus, King 
of Iopa, and my mother is Cassiopoeia of 
the beautiful tresses, and they called me 
Andromeda, as long as life was mine. 
And I stand bound here, hapless that I 
am, for the sea-monster’s food, to atone for 
my mother’s sin. For she boasted of me 
once that I was fairer than Atergatis, 
Queen of the Fishes ; so she in her wrath 
sent the sea-floods, and her brother the Fire 
King sent the earthquakes, and wasted all 
the land ; and after the floods a monster 
bred of the slime, who devours all living 
things. And now he must devour me, 
guiltless though I am — me who never 
harmed a living thing, nor saw a fish 
upon the shore but I gave it life, and 
threw it back into the sea ; for in our land 


PERSEUS. 


61 


we eat no fish, for fear of Atergatis their 
Queen. Yet the priests say that nothing 
but my blood can atone for a sin which I 
never committed.” 

But Perseus laughed, and said — “ A sea- 
monster ! I have fought with worse than 
him; I would have faced Immortals for 
your sake ; how much more a beast of the 
sea?” 

Then Andromeda looked up at him, and 
new hope was kindled in her breast, so 
proud and fair did he stand, with one hand 
round her, and in the other the glittering 
sword. But she only sighed, and wept the 
more, and cried, — 

“Why will you die, young as you are? 
Is there not death and sorrow enough in 
the world already ? It is noble for me to 
die, that I may save the lives of a whole 
people ; but you, better than them all, why 
should I slay you too ? Go you your way ; 
I must go mine.” 


62 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


But Perseus cried — “ Not so ; for the 
Lords of Olympus, whom I serve, are the 
friends of the heroes, and help them on 
to noble deeds. Led by them, I slew the 
Gorgon, the beautiful horror ; and not 
without them do I come hither, to slay 
this monster with that same Gorgon’s 
head. Yet hide your eyes when I leave 
you, lest the sight of it freeze you too to 
stone.” 

But the maiden answered nothing, for 
she could not believe his words. And then, 
suddenly looking up, she pointed to the 
sea, and shrieked, — 

“There he comes, with the sunrise, as 
they promised. I must die now. How 
shall I endure it ? Oh, go ! Is it not dread- 
ful enough to be torn piecemeal without 
having you to look on?” And she tried 
to thrust him away. 

But he said — “ I go ; yet promise me 
one thing ere I go; that if I slay this 


PERSEUS. 


63 


beast yon will be my wife, and come back 
with me to my kingdom in fruitful Argos, 
for I am a king’s heir. Promise me, and 
seal it with a kiss.” 

Then she lifted up her face, and kissed 
him ; and Perseus laughed for joy, and 
flew upward, while Andromeda crouched 
trembling on the rock, waiting for what 
might befall. 

On came the great sea-monster, coasting 
along like a huge black galley, lazily 
breasting the ripple, and stopping at times 
by creek or headland, to watch for the 
laughter of girls at their bleaching, or 
cattle pawing on the sand-hills, or boys 
bathing on the beach. His great sides 
were fringed with clustering shells and 
see-weeds, and the water gurgled in and 
out of his wide jaws, as he rolled along, 
dripping and glistening, in the beams of 
the morning sun. 

At last he saw Andromeda, and shot 


G4 THE GREEK HEROES. 

forward to take his prey, while the waves 
foamed white behind him, and before him 
the fish fled leaping. 

Then down from the height of the air 
fell Perseus, like a shooting star ; down to 
the crests of the waves, while Andromeda 
hid her face as he shouted ; and then there 
was silence for a while. 

At last she looked up trembling, and 
saw Perseus springing toward her; and 
instead of the monster a long black rock, 
with the sea rippling quietly round it. 

Who then so proud as Perseus, as he 
leapt back to the rock, and lifted his fair 
Andromeda in his arms, and flew with her 
to the cliff-top, as a falcon carries a dove ? 

Who so proud as Perseus, and who so 
joyful as all the iEthiop people? For 
they had stood watching the monster from 
the cliffs, wailing for the maiden’s fate. 
And already a messenger had gone to 
Cepheus and Cassiopoeia, where they sat 


PERSEUS. 


65 


in sackcloth and ashes on the ground, in 
the innermost palace chamber, awaiting 
their daughter’s end. And they came, and 
all the city with them, to see the wonder, 
with songs and with dances, with cymbals 
and harps, and received their daughter 
back again, as one alive from the dead. 

Then Cepheus said — “ Hero of the Hel- 
lens, stay here with me and be my son- 
in-law, and I will give you the half of my 
kingdom.” 

“I will be your son-in-law,” said Per- 
seus, “but of your kingdom I will have 
none ; for I long after the pleasant land of 
Greece, and my mother who waits for me 
at home.” 

Then Cepheus said — “You must not 
take my daughter away at once, for she 
is to us like one alive from the dead. 
Stay with us here a year, and after that 
you shall return with honor.” And Per- 
seus consented ; but before he went to the 
5 


66 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


palace, he bade the people bring stones 
and wood, and built three altars, one to 
Athene, and one to Hermes, and one to 
Father Zeus, and offered bullocks and 
rams. 

And some said — “ This is a pious man : ” 
yet the priests said — “ The Sea Queen will 
be yet more fierce against us, because her 
monster is slain.” But they were afraid 
to speak aloud, for they feared the Gorgon’s 
head. So they went up to the palace : and 
when they came in, there stood in the 
hall Phineus, the brother of Ceplieus, 
chafing like a bear robbed of her whelps, 
and with him his sons, and his servants, 
and many an armed man ; and he cried 
to Cepheus, — 

“You shall not marry your daughter to 
this stranger, of whom no one knows even 
the name. Was not Andromeda betrothed 
to my son ? And now she is safe again, 
has he not a right to claim her ? ” 






















* 













































































. 










































































i. 


























































































PERSEUS. 


67 


But Perseus laughed and answered — 
“If your son is in want of a bride, let 
him save a maiden for himself. As yet 
he seems but a helpless bridegroom. He 
left this one to die, and dead she is to 
him. I saved her alive, and alive she is to 
me, but to no one else. Ungrateful man ! 
have I not saved your land, and the lives 
of your sons and daughters, and will you 
requite me thus ? Go, or it will be worse 
for you.” But all the men-at-arms drew 
their swords, and rushed on him like wild 
beasts. 

Then he unveiled the Gorgon’s head, 
and said — “ This has delivered my bride 
from one wild beast ; it shall deliver her 
from many.” And as he spoke, Phineus 
and all his men-at-arms stopped short, and 
stiffened each man as he stood ; and before 
Perseus had drawn the goat-skin over the 
face again, they were all turned into 
stone. 


68 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


Then Perseus bade the people bring 
levers and roll them out ; and what was 
done with them after that, I cannot tell. 

So they made a great wedding-feast, 
which lasted seven whole days, and who 
so happy as Perseus and Andromeda ? 

But on the eighth night, Perseus dreamed 
a dream ; and he saw standing beside him 
Pallas Athene, as he had seen her in Ser- 
iphos, seven long years before ; and she 
stood and called him by name, and said, — 
“Perseus, you have played the man, 
and see, you have your reward. Know 
now that the Gods are just, and help him 
who helps himself. Now give me here 
Herpe the sword and the sandals, and the 
hat of darkness, that I may give them 
back to their owners ; but the Gorgon’s 
head you shall keep awhile, for you will 
need it in your land of Greece. Then you 
shall lay it up in my temple at Seriphos, 
that I may wear it on my shield forever, a 


PERSEUS. 


69 


terror to the Titans and the monsters, and 
the foes of Gods and men. And as for 
this land, I have appeased the sea and the 
fire, and there shall be no more floods nor 
earthquakes. But let the people build 
altars to Father Zeus and to me, and wor- 
ship the Immortals, the Lords of heaven 
and earth.” 

And Perseus rose to give her the sword, 
and the cap, and the sandals ; but he woke, 
and his dream vanished away. And yet it 
was not altogether a dream ; for the goat- 
skin with the head was in its place : but 
the sword, and the cap, and the sandals 
were gone, and Perseus never saw them 
more. 

Then a great awe fell on Perseus ; and 
he went out in the morning to the people, 
and told his dream, and bade them build 
altars to Zeus the Father of Gods and men, 
and to Athene who gives wisdom to heroes ; 
and fear no more the earthquakes and the 


70 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


floods, but sow and build in peace. And 
they did so for a while, and prospered : but 
after Perseus was gone, they forgot Zeus 
and Athene, and worshiped again Ater- 
gatis the queen, and the undying fish of 
the sacred lake, where Deucalion’s deluge 
was swallowed up, and they burnt their 
children before the Fire King, till Zeus was 
angry with that foolish people, and brought 
a strange nation against them out of Egypt, 
who fought against them and wasted them 
utterly, and dwelt in their cities for many 
a hundred years. 


PART Y. 

HOW PERSEUS CAME HOME AGAIN. 

And when a year was ended, Perseus 
hired Phoenicians from Tyre, and cut down 
cedars, and built himself a noble galley; 
and painted its cheeks with vermilion, and 
pitched its sides with pitch ; and in it he 
put Andromeda, and all her dowry of 
jewels, and rich shawls, and spices from 
the East ; and great was the weeping when 
they rowed away. But the remembrance 
of his brave deed was left behind ; and 
Andromeda’s rock was shown at Jopa in 
Palestine, till more than a thousand years 
were past. 

So Perseus and the Phoenicians rowed to 
the westward, across the sea of Crete, till 

they came to the blue ^Egean and the 

71 


72 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


pleasant Isles of Hellas, and Seriphos, his 
ancient home. 

Then he left his galley on the beach, 
and went up as of old ; and he embraced 
his mother, and Dictys his good foster- 
father, and they wept over each other a 
long while, for it was seven years and 
more since they had met. - 

Then Perseus went out, and up to the 
hall of Polydectes ; and underneath the 
goat-skin he bore the Gorgon’s head. 

And when he came into the hall, Poly- 
dectes sat at the table-head, and all his 
nobles and landowners on either side, each 
according to his rank, feasting on the fish 
and the goat’s-flesh, and drinking the 
blood-red wine. The harpers harped, and 
the revelers shouted, and the wine-cups 
rang merrily as they passed from hand to 
hand, and great was the noise in the hall 
of Polydectes. 

Then Perseus stood upon the threshold, 


PERSEUS. 


73 


and called to the king by name. But none 
of the guests knew Perseus, for he was 
changed by his long journey. He had 
gone out a boy, and he was come home a 
hero ; his eyes shone like an eagle’s, and 
his beard was like a lion’s beard, and he 
stood up like a wild bull in his pride. 

But Polydectes the wicked knew him, 
and hardened his heart still more; and 
scornfully he called, — 

“ Ah, foundling ! Have you found it 
more easy to promise than to fulfil \ ” 

“ Those whom the Gods help fulfil their 
promises ; and those who despise them 
reap as they have sown. Behold the Gor- 
gon’s head ! ” 

Then Perseus drew back the goat-skin, 
and held aloft the Gorgon’s head. 

Pale grew Polydectes and his guests, as 
they looked upon that dreadful face. They 
tried to rise up from their seats : but from 
their seats they never rose, but stiffened, 


74 THE GREEK HEROES. 

each man where he sat, into a ring of cold 
gray stones. 

Then Perseus turned and left them, and 
went down to his galley in the bay ; and 
he gave the kingdom to good Dictys, and 
sailed away with his mother and his bride. 

And Polydectes and his guests sat still, 
with the wine-cups before them on the 
board; till the rafters crumbled down 
above their heads, and the walls behind 
their backs, and the table crumbled down 
between them, and the grass sprung up 
about their feet : but Polydectes and his 
guests sit on the hillside, a ring of gray 
stones until this day. 

But Perseus rowed westward toward 
Argos, and landed and went up to the 
town. And when he came, he found that 
Acrisius his grandfather had fled. For 
Proetus his wicked brother had made war 
against him afresh ; and had come across 
the river from Tiryns, and conquered 


PERSEUS. 


75 


Argos, and Acrisins had fled to Larissa, 
in the country of the wild Pelasgi. 

Then Perseus called the Argives to- 
gether, and told them who he was, and all 
the noble deeds which he had done. And 
all the nobles and the yeomen made him 
king, for they saw that he had a royal 
heart ; and they fought with him against 
Argos, and took it, and killed Proetus, and 
made the Cyclopes serve them, and build 
them walls rount Argos, like the walls 
which they had built at Tiryns : and there 
were great rejoicings in the vale of Argos, 
because they had got a king from Father 
Zeus. 

But Perseus’s heart yearned after his 
grandfather, and he said, “ Surely he is my 
flesh and blood ; and he will love me now 
that I am come home with honor : I will 
go and find him, and bring him home, and 
we will reign together in peace.” 

So Perseus sailed away with his Phoenb 


76 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


cians, round Hydrea and Sunium, past 
Marathon and the Attic shore, and through 
Euripus, and up the long Euboean sea, till 
he came to the town of Larissa, where the 
wild Pelasgi dwelt. 

And when he came there, all the people 
were in the fields, and there was feasting, 
and all kinds of games ; for Teutamenes 
their king wished to honor Acrisius, 
because he was the king of a mighty 
land. 

So Perseus did not tell his name, but 
went up the games unknown ; for he said, 
“ If I carry away the prize in the games, 
my grandfather’s heart will be softened 
toward me.” 

So he threw off his helmet, and his 
cuirass, and all his clothes, and stood 
among the youths of Larissa, while all 
wondered at him, and said, “ Who is this 
young stranger, who stands like a wild bull 
in his pride? Surely he is one of the 


PERSEUS. 


77 


heroes, the sons of the Immortals, from 
Olympus.” 

And when the games began, they won- 
dered yet more ; for Perseus was the best 
man of all, at running, and leaping, and 
wrestling, and throwing the javelin ; and 
he won four crowns, and took them, and 
then he said to himself, “ There is a fifth 
crown yet to be won ; I will win that, and 
lay them all upon the knees of my grand- 
father.” 

And as he spoke, he saw where Acrisius 
sat, by the side of Teutamenes the king, 
with his white beard flowing down upon 
his knees, and his royal staff in his hand ; 
and Perseus wept when he looked at him, 
for his heart yearned after his kin ; and 
he said, “ Surely he is a kingly old man, 
yet he need not be ashamed of his grand- 
son.” 

Then he took the quoits, and hurled 
them, five fathoms beyond all the rest; 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


78 

and the people shouted, “ Further yet, 
brave stranger ! There has never been 
such a hurler in this land.” 

Then Perseus put out all his strength, 
and hurled. But a gust of wind came 
from the sea, and carried the quoit aside, 
and far beyond all the rest ; and it fell on 
the foot of Acrisius, and he swooned away 
with the pain. 

Perseus shrieked, and ran up to him; 
but when they lifted the old man up, 
he was dead ; for his life was slow and 
feeble. 

Then Perseus rent his clothes, and cast 
dust upon his head, and wept a long while 
for his grandfather. At last he rose, and 
called to all the people aloud, and said, — 

“ The Gods are true, and what they have 
ordained must be. I am Perseus, the 
grandson of this dead man, the far-famed 
slayer of the Gorgon.” 

Then he told them how the prophecy 


PERSEUS. 


79 


had declared that he should kill his grand- 
father, and all the story of his life. 

So they made a great mourning for 
Acrisius, and burnt him on a right rich 
pile ; and Perseus went to the temple, and 
was purified from the guilt of the death, 
because he had done it unknowingly. 

Then he went home to Argos, and 
reigned there well with fair Andromeda ; 
and they had four sons and three daugh- 
ters, and died in a good old age. 

And when they died, the ancients say, 
Athene took them up into the sky, with 
Cepheus and Cassiopoeia. And there on 
starlight nights you may see them shining 
still ; Cepheus with his kingly crown, and 
Cassiopoeia in her ivory chair, plaiting her 
star-spangled tresses, and Perseus with the 
Gorgon’s head, and fair Andromeda beside 
him, spreading her long white arms across 
the heaven, as she stood when chained to 
the stone for the monster. All night 


80 THE GREEK HEROES. 

long they shine, for a beacon to wan- 
dering sailors : but all day they feast 
with the Gods, on the still blue peaks of 
Olympus. 


STORY II,— THE ARGONAUTS. 


PART I 

HOW THE CENTAUR TRAINED THE HEROES 
ON PELION. 

I have told you of a hero who fought 
with wild beasts and with wild men ; but 
now I have a tale of heroes who sailed 
away into a distant land to win themselves 
renown forever, in the adventure of the 
Golden Fleece. 

Whither they sailed, my children, I can- 
not clearly tell. It all happened long ago ; 
so long that it has all grown dim, like a 
dream which you dreamt last year. And 
why they went, I cannot tell ; some say 


84 : 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


that it was to win gold. It may be so ; but 
the noblest deeds which have been done on 
earth, have not been done for gold. It was 
not for the sake of gold that the Lord came 
down and died, and the Apostles went out 
to preach the good news in all lands. The 
Spartans looked for no reward in money 
when they fought and died at Thermopylae ; 
and Socrates the wise asked no pay from 
his countrymen, but lived poor and bare- 
foot all his days, only caring to make men 
good. And there are heroes in our days 
also, who do noble deeds, but not for gold. 
Our discoverers did not go to make them- 
selves rich, when they sailed out one after 
another into the dreary frozen seas ; nor 
did the ladies, who went out last year, to 
drudge in the hospitals of the East, mak- 
ing themselves poor, that they might be 
rich in noble works. And young men, too, 
whom you know, children, and some of 
them of your own kin, did they say to them- 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


85 


selves, “How much money shall I earn?” 
when they went out to the war, leaving 
wealth, and comfort, and a pleasant home, 
and all that money can give, to face hun- 
ger and thirst, and wounds and death, that 
they might fight for their country and 
their Queen ? No, children, there is a bet- 
ter thing on earth than wealth, a better 
thing than life itself ; and that is, to have 
done something before you die, for which 
good men may honor you, and God your 
Father smile upon your work. 

Therefore we will believe — why should 
we not ? — of these same Argonauts of old, 
that they too were noble men, who planned 
and did a noble deed ; and that therefore 
their fame has lived, and been told in story 
and in song, mixed up, no doubt, with 
dreams and fables, and yet true and right 
at heart. So we will honor these old Ar- 
gonauts, and listen to their story as it 
stands ; and we will try to be like them. 


86 THE GREEK HEROES. 

each of us in our place ; for each of us has 
a Golden Fleece to seek, and a wild sea to 
sail over, ere we reach it, and dragons to 
fight ere it be ours. 

And what was that first Golden Fleece ? 
I do not know, nor care. The old Hellenes 
said that it hung in Colchis, which we call 
the Circassian coast, nailed to a beech-tree 
in the war-God’s wood; and that it was 
the fleece of the wondrous ram, who bore 
Phrixus and Helle across the Euxine sea. 
For Phrixus and Helle were the children 
of the cloud-nymph, and of Athamas the 
Minuan king. And when a famine came 
upon the land, their cruel stepmother, Ino, 
wished to kill them, that her own children 
might reign, and said that they must be 
sacrificed on an altar, to turn away the 
anger of the gods. So the poor children 
were brought to the altar, and the priest 
stood ready with his knife, when out of the 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


87 


clouds came the Golden Earn, and took 
them on his back, and vanished. Then 
madness came upon that foolish king 
Athamas, and ruin upon Ino and her chil- 
dren. For Athamas killed one of them in 
his fury, and Ino fled from him with the 
other in her arms, and leaped from a cliff 
into the sea, and was changed into a dol- 
phin, such as you have seen, which wanders 
over the waves forever sighing, with its 
little one clasped to its breast. 

But the people drove out King Athamas, 
because he had killed his child ; and he 
roamed about in his misery, till he came 
to the Oracle in Delphi. And the Oracle 
told him that he must wander for his sin, 
till the wild beasts should feast him as 
their guest. So he went on in hunger and 
sorrow for many a weary day, till he saw 
a pack of wolves. The wolves were tear- 
ing a sheep ; but when they saw Athamas 
they fled, and left the sheep for him, and 


88 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


he ate of it ; and then he knew that the 
oracle was fulfilled at last. So he wan- 
dered no more ; but settled, and built a 
town, and became a king again. 

But the ram carried the two children 
far away over land and sea, till he came 
to the Thracian Chersonese, and there Helle 
fell into the sea. So those narrow straits 
are called “ Hellespont,” after her ; and 
they bear that name until this day. 

Then the ram flew on with Phrixus to 
the northeast across the sea which we call 
the Black Sea now ; but the Hellens called 
it Euxine. And at last, they say, he 
stopped at Colchis, on the steep Circassian 
coast ; and there Phrixus married Chalchi- 
ope, the daughter of Aietes the king ; and 
offered the ram in sacrifice ; and Aietes 
nailed the ram’s fleece to a beech, in the 
grove of Ares the war-God. 

And after awhile Phrixus died, and was 
buried, but his spirit had no rest ; for he 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


89 


was buried far from his native land, and 
the pleasant hills of Hellas. So he came 
in dreams to the heroes of the Minuai, 
and called sadly by their beds, — “ Come 
and set my spirit free, that I may go 
home to my fathers and to my kinsfolk, 
and the pleasant Minuan land.” 

And they asked — u How shall we set 
your spirit free ? ” 

“ You must sail over the sea to Colchis, 
and bring home the golden fleece; and 
then my spirit will come back with it, and 
I shall sleep with my fathers and have 
rest.” 

He came thus, and called to them often ; 
but when they woke they looked at each 
other, and said— “ Who dare sail to Col- 
chis, or bring home the golden fleece?” 
And in all the country none was brave 
enough to try it ; for the man and the 
time were not come. 

Phrixus had a cousin called H5son, who 


90 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


was king in Iolcos by the sea. There he 
ruled over the rich Minuan heroes, as 
Athamas his uncle ruled in Boeotia ; and 
like Athamas, he was an unhappy man. 
For he had a stepbrother named Pelias, 
of whom some said that he was a nymph’s 
son, and there were dark and sad tales 
about his birth. When he was a babe he 
was cast out on the mountains, and a wild 
mare came by and kicked him. But a 
shepherd passing found the baby, with its 
face all blackened by the blow ; and took 
him home, and called him Pelias, because 
his face was bruised and black. And he 
grew up fierce and lawless, and did many 
a fearful deed ; and at last he drove out 
JEson his stepbrother, and then his own 
brother Neleus, and took the kingdom to 
himself, and ruled over the rich Minuan 
heroes, in Iolcos by the sea. 

And JEson, when he was driven out, 
went sadly away out of the town, leading 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


91 


his little son by the hand ; and he said 
to himself, “ I must hide the child in the 
mountains ; or Pelias will surely kill him, 
because he is the heir.” 

So he went up from the sea across the 
valley, through the vineyards and the olive 
groves, and across the torrent of Anauros, 
toward Pelion the ancient mountain, whose 
brows are white with snow. 

He went up and up into the mountain 
over marsh, and crag, and down, till the 
boy was tired and foot-sore, and Hfeon had 
to bear him in his arms, till he came to 
the mouth of a lonely cave, at the foot of 
a mighty cliff. 

Above the cliff the snow wreaths hung, 
dripping and cracking in the sun : but at 
its foot around the cave’s mouth grew all 
fair flowers and herbs, as if in a garden, 
ranged in order, each sort by itself. There 
they grew gaily in the sunshine, and 
the -spray of the torrent from above ; 


92 THE GREEK HEROES. 

while from the cave came the sound of 
music, and a man’s voice singing to the 
harp. 

Then iEson put down the lad, and 
whispered, — 

“ Fear not, but go in, and whomsoever 
you shall find, lay your hands upon his 
knees, and say, 4 In the name of Zeus the 
father of gods and men, I am your guest 
from this day forth.’ ” 

Then the lad went in without trembling, 
for he too was a hero’s son : but when he 
was within, he stopped in wonder, to listen 
to that magic song. 

And there he saw the singer lying, upon 
bear-skins and fragrant boughs, Cheiron, 
the ancient centaur, the wisest of all 
things beneath the sky. Down to the 
waist he was a man ; but below he was a 
noble horse; his white hair rolled down 
over his broad shoulders, and his white 
beard over his broad brown chest ; and his 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


93 


eyes were wise and mild, and his forehead 
like a mountain-wall. 

And in his hands he held a harp of gold, 
and struck it with a golden key ; and as 
he struck, he sang till his eyes glittered, 
and filled all the cave with light. 

And he sang of the birth of Time, and 
of the heavens and the dancing stars ; and 
of the ocean, and the ether, and the fire, 
and the shaping of the wondrous earth. 
And he sang of the treasures of the hills, 
and the hidden jewels of the mine, and the 
veins of fire and metal, and the virtues 
of all healing herbs, and of the speech 
of birds, and of prophecy, and of hidden 
things to come. 

Then he sang of health, and strength, 
and manhood, and a valiant heart; and 
of music, and hunting, and wrestling, and 
all the games which heroes love ; and of 
travel, and wars, and sieges, and a noble 
death in fight ; and then he sang of peace 


94 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


and plenty, and of equal justice in the 
land : and as he sang, the boy listened wide- 
eyed, and forgot his errand in the song. 

And at the last old Cheiron was silent, 
and called the lad with a soft voice. 

And the lad ran trembling to him, and 
would have laid his hands upon his knees : 
but Cheiron smiled, and said, “ Call hither 
your father .ZEson, for I know you, and 
all that has befallen, and saw you both 
afar in the valley, even before you left the 
town.” 

Then .Eson came in sadly, and Cheiron 
asked him, “ Why earnest you not yourself 
to me, ^Eson the .Eolid ? ” 

And iEson said, — 

“ I thought, Cheiron will pity the lad if he 
sees him come alone ; and I wished to try 
whether he was fearless, and dare venture 
like a hero’s son. But now I entreat you 
by Father Zeus, let the boy be your guest 
till better times, and train him among the 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


95 


sons of the heroes, that he may avenge 
his father’s house.” 

Then Cheiron smiled, and drew the lad 
to him, and laid his hand upon his golden 
locks, and said, “Are you afraid of my 
horse’s hoofs, fair boy, or will you be my 
pupil from this day ? ” 

“ I would gladly have horse’s hoofs like 
you, if I could sing such songs as yours.” 

And Cheiron laughed, and said, “ Sit here 
by me till sundown, when your playfellows 
will come home, and you shall learn like 
them to be a King, worthy to rule over 
gallant men.” 

Then he turned to ^Kson, and said, “ Go 
back in peace, and bend before the storm 
like a prudent man. This boy shall not 
cross the Anauros again, till he has be- 
come a glory to you and to the house of 
JEolus” 

And iEson wept over his son and went 
away ; but the boy did not weep, so full 


96 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


was his fancy of that strange cave, and 
the Centaur, and his song, and the play- 
fellows whom he was to see. 

Then Cheiron put the lyre into his hands, 
and taught him how to play it, till the- sun 
sank low behind the cliff, and a shout was 
heard outside. 

And then in came the sons of the heroes, 
HCneas, and Heracles, and Peleus, and 
many another mighty name. 

And great Cheiron leapt up joyfully, and 
his hoofs made the cave resound, as they 
shouted, “ Come out, Father Cheiron ; come 
out and see our game.” And one cried, “ 1 
have killed two deer,” and another, “ I took 
a wild cat among the crags ; ” and Heracles 
dragged a wild goat after him by its horns, 
for he was as huge as a mountain crag ; 
and Caeneus carried a bear-cub under each 
arm, and laughed when they scratched and 
bit ; for neither tooth nor steel could wound 
him. 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


97 


And Cheiron praised them all, each ac- 
cording to his deserts. 

Only one walked apart and silent, Ascle- 
pius, the too- wise child, with his bosom 
full of herbs and flowers, and round his 
wrist a spotted snake ; he came with down- 
cast eyes to Cheiron, and whispered how 
he had watched the snake cast his old skin, 
and grow young again before his eyes, and 
how he had gone down into a village in 
the vale, and cured a dying man with a 
herb which he had seen a sick goat eat. 

And Cheiron smiled, and said, “ To each 
Athene and Apollo give some gift, and each 
is worthy in his place; but to this child 
they have given an honor beyond all honors 
to cure while others kill.” 

Then the lads brought in wood, and split 
it, and lighted a blazing fire ; and others 
skinned the deer and quartered them, and 
set them to roast before the fire ; and while 

the venison was cooking they bathed in 

7 


98 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


the snow torrent, and washed away the 
dust and sweat. 

And then all ate till they could eat no 
more, (for they had tasted nothing since 
the dawn,) and drank of the clear spring 
water, for wine is not fit for growing lads. 
And when the remnants were put away, 
they all lay down upon the skins and leaves 
about the fire, and each took the lyre in 
turn, and sang and played with all his 
heart. 

And after a while they all went out to 
a plot of grass at the cave’s mouth, and 
there they boxed, and ran, and wrestled, 
and laughed till the stones fell from the 
cliffs. 

Then Cheiron took his lyre, and all the 
lads joined hands ; and as J he played, they 
danced to his measure, in and out, and 
round and round. There they danced 
hand in hand, till the night fell over land 
and sea, while the black glen shone with 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


99 


their broad white limbs, and the gleam of 
their golden hair. 

And the lad danced with them, delighted, 
and then slept a wholesome sleep, upon 
fragrant leaves of bay, and myrtle, and 
marjoram, and flowers of thyme ; and rose 
at the dawn, and bathed in the torrent, and 
became a schoolfellow to the heroes’ sons, 
and forgot Iolcos, and his father, and all 
his former life. But he grew strong, and 
brave and cunning, upon the pleasant 
downs of Pelion, in the keen hungry moun- 
tain air. And he learnt to wrestle, and to 
box, and to hunt, and to play upon the 
harp ; and next he learnt to ride, for 
old Cheiron used to mount him on his 
back ; and he learnt the virtues of all 
herbs, and how to cure all wounds ; and 
Cheiron called him Jason the healer, and 
that is his name until this day. 




PART II. 


HOW JASON LOST HIS SANDAL IN ANAUROS 

And ten years came and went, and Jason 
was grown to be a mighty man. Some 
of his fellows were gone, and some were 
growing up by his side. Asclepius was 
gone into Poloponnese, to work his won- 
drous cures on men ; and some say he 
used to raise the dead to life. And Hera- 
cles was gone to Thebes, to fulfil those 
famous labors which have become a proverb 
among men. And Peleus had married a 
sea-nymph, and his wedding is famous to 
this day. And iEneas was gone home to 
Troy, and many a noble tale you will read 
of him, and of all the other gallant heroes, 
the scholars of Cheiron the just. And it 
happened on a day that Jason stood on the 


THE ARGONAUTS, 101 

mountain, and looked north and south and 
east and west ; and Cherion stood by him 
and watched him, for he knew that the 
time was come. 

And Jason looked and saw the plains 
of Thessaly, where the Lapithai breed their 
horses; and the lake of Boibe, and the 
stream which runs northward to Peneus 
and Temple ; and he looked north, and saw 
the mountain wall which guards the Mag- 
nesian shore ; Olympus, the seat of the 
Immortals, and Ossa, and Pelion, where he 
stood. Then he locked east and saw the 
bright blue sea, which stretched away for- 
ever toward the dawn. Then he looked 
south, and saw a pleasant land, with white- 
walled towns and farms, nestling along the 
shore of a land-locked bay, while the 
smoke rose blue among the trees ; and he 
knew it for the bay of Pagasai, and the 
rich lowlands of Haemonia, and Iolcos by 
the sea. 


102 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


Then he sighed, and asked ; “ Is it true 
what the heroes tell me, that I am heir of 
that fair land ? ” 

“And what good would it be to you, 
Jason, if you were heir of that fair land ? ” 

“ I would take it and keep it.” 

“ A strong man has taken it and kept it 
long. Are you stronger than Pelias the 
terrible ? ” 

“ I can try my strength with his,” said 
Jason. But Cheiron sighed, and said : — 

“You have many a danger to go through 
before you rule in Iolcos by the sea ; many 
a danger, and many a woe ; and strange 
troubles in strange lands, such as man 
never saw before.” 

“The happier I,” said Jason, to see 
what man never saw before.” 

And Cheiron sighed again, and said : 
“ The eaglet must leave the nest when it is 
fledged. Will you go to Iolcos by the sea? 
Then promise me two things before you go.” 



ON THE BANK OF ANAUROS SAT A WOMAN. P. 103 






THE ARGONAUTS. 


103 


Jason promised, and Cheiron answered : 
“ Speak harshly to no soul whom you may 
meet, and stand by the word which you 
shall speak.” 

Jason wondered why Cheiron asked this 
of him ; but he knew that the Centaur 
was a prophet, and saw things long before 
they came. So he promised, and leapt 
down the mountain, to take his fortune 
like a man. 

He went down through the arbutus 
thickets, and across the downs of thyme, 
till he came to the vineyard walls, and the 
pomegranates and the olives in the glen ; 
and among the olives roared Anauros, all 
foaming with a summer flood. 

And on the bank of Anauros sat a 
woman, all wrinkled, gray, and old; her 
head shook palsied on her breast, and her 
hands shook palsied on her knees ; and 
when she saw Jason, she spoke whining : 
“ Who will carry me across the flood ? ” 


104 THE GREEK HEROES. 

Jason was bold and hasty, and was just 
going to leap into the flood ; and yet he 
thought twice before he leapt, so loud 
roared the torrent down, all brown from 
the mountain rains, and silver-veined with 
melting snow ; while underneath he could 
hear the boulders rumbling like the tramp 
of horsemen or the roll of wheels, as they 
ground along the narrow channel, and 
shook the rocks on which he stood. 

But the old woman whined all the more : 
“ I am weak and old, fair youth. For 
Hera’s sake, carry me over the torrent.” 

And Jason was going to answer her 
scornfully, when Cheiron’s words came to 
his mind. 

So he said : “ For Hera’s sake, the Queen 
of the Immortals on Olympus, I will carry 
you over the torrent, unless we both are 
drowned midway.” 

Then the old dame leapt upon his back, 
as nimbly as a goat ; and Jason staggered 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


105 


in, wondering ; and the first step was up 
to his knees. 

The first step was up to his knees, and 
the second step was up to his waist ; and 
the stones rolled about his feet, and his 
feet slipped about the stones ; so he went 
on staggering and panting, while the old 
woman cried from off his back : — 

“ Fool, you have wet my mantle ! Do 
you make game of poor old souls like 
me?” 

Jason had half a mind to drop her, and 
let her get through the torrent by herself ; 
but Cheiron’s words were in his mind, and 
he said only : “ Patience, mother ; the best 
horse may stumble some day.” 

At last he staggered to the shore, and 
set her down upon the bank ; and a strong 
man he needed to have been, or that wild 
water he never would have crossed. 

He lay panting awhile upon the bank, 
and then leapt up to go upon his journey ; 


106 THE GREEK HEROES. 

but he cast one look at the old woman, for 
he thought, “ She should thank me once 
at least.” 

And as he looked, she grew fairer than 
all women, and taller than all men on 
earth; and her garments shone like the 
summer sea, and her jewels like the stars 
of heaven ; and over her forehead was a 
veil, woven of the golden clouds of sunset ; 
and through the veil she looked down on 
him, with great soft heifer’s eyes ; with 
great eyes, mild and awful, which filled all 
the glen with light. 

And Jason fell upon his knees, and hid 
his face between his hands. 

And she spoke — “I am the Queen of 
Olympus, Hera the wife of Zeus. As thou 
hast done to me, so will I do to thee. 
Call on me in the hour of need, and try if 
the Immortals can forget.” 

And when Jason looked up, she rose 
from off the earth, like a pillar of tall white 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


107 


cloud, and floated away across the moun- 
tain peaks, toward Olympus the holy 
hill. 

Then a great fear fell on Jason ; but 
after a while he grew light of heart ; and 
he blessed old Cheiron, and said — “ Surely 
the Centaur is a prophet, and guessed 
what .would come to pass, when he bade 
me speak harshly to no soul whom I might 
meet.” 

Then he went down toward Iolcos, and 
as he walked, he found that he had lost one 
of his sandals in the flood. 

And as he went through the streets, the 
people came out to look at him, so tall and 
fair was he ; but some of the elders whis- 
pered together ; and at last one of them 
stopped Jason, and called to him — “ Fair 
lad, who are you, and whence come you ; 
and what is your errand in the town ? ” 

“ My name, good father, is Jason, and X 
come from Pelion up above ; and my errand 


108 THE GREEK HEROES. 

is to Pelias your king ; tell me then where 
his palace is.” 

But the old man started, and grew pale, 
and said, “ Do you not know the oracle, 
my son, that you go so boldly through the 
town, with but one sandal on ? ” 

“ I am a stranger here, and know of no 
oracle ; but what of my one sandal ? I lost 
the other in Anauros, while I was strug- 
gling with the flood.” 

Then the old man looked back to his 
companions ; and one sighed and another 
smiled ; at last he said — “ I will tell you, 
lest you rush upon your ruin unawares. 
The oracle in Delphi has said, that a man 
wearing one sandal should take the king- 
dom from Pelias, and keep it for himself. 
Therefore beware how you go up to his 
palace, for he is the fiercest and most 
cunning of all kings.” 

Then Jason laughed a great laugh, like 
a war-horse in his pride — “ Good news, 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


109 


good father, both for you and me. For 
that very end I came into the town.” 

Then he strode on toward the palace 
of Pelias, while all the people wondered at 
his bearing. 

And he stood in the doorway and cried, 
w Come out, come out, Pelias the valiant, 
and fight for your kingdom like a man.” 

Pelias came out wondering, and “ Who 
are you, hold youth ? ” he cried. 

“I am Jason, the son of ^son, the heir 
of all this land.” 

Then Pelias lifted up his hands and 
eyes, and wept, or seemed to weep ; and 
blessed the heavens which had brought his 
nephew to him, never to leave him more. 
“For,” said he, “I have but three daugh- 
ters, and no son to be my heir. You shall 
be my heir then, and rule the kingdom 
after me, and marry whichsoever of my 
daughters you shall choose ; though a sad 
kingdom you will find it, and whosoever 


110 THE GREEK HEROES, 

rules it a miserable man. But come in, 
come in, and feast.” 

So he drew Jason in, whether he would 
or not, and spoke to him so lovingly and 
feasted him so well, that Jason’s anger 
passed ; and after supper his three cousins 
came into the hall, and Jason thought that 
he should like well enough to have one of 
them for his wife. 

But at last he said to Pelias, “ Why do 
you look so sad, my uncle? And what 
did you mean just now, when you said 
that this was a doleful kingdom, and its 
ruler a miserable man ? ” 

Then Pelias sighed heavily again and 
again and again, like a man who had to 
tell some dreadful story and was afraid 
to begin ; but at last — 

“ For seven long years and more have I 
never known a quiet night ; and no more 
will he who comes after me, till the golden 
fleece be brought home.” 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


Ill 


Then he told Jason the story of Phrixus, 
and of the golden fleece; and told him, 
too, which was a lie, that Phrixus’s spirit 
tormented him, calling to him day and 
night. And his daughters came, and told 
the same tale, (for their father had taught 
them their parts,) and wept, and said, “ Oh, 
who will bring home the golden fleece, that 
our uncle’s spirit may have rest ; and that 
we may have rest also, whom he never 
lets sleep in peace ? ” 

Jason sat awhile, sad and silent ; for he 
had often heard of that golden fleece ; but 
he looked on it as a thing hopeless and im- 
possible for any mortal man to win it. 

But when Pelias saw him silent, he 
began to talk of other things, and courted 
Jason more and more, speaking to him as 
if he was certain to be his heir, and asking 
his advice about the kingdom; till Jason, 
who was young and simple, could not help 
saying to himself, “Surely he is not the 


112 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


dark man whom people call him. Yet why 
did he drive my father out?” And he 
asked Pelias boldly, “ Men say that you 
are terrible, and a man of blood ; but I find 
you a kind and hospitable man ; and as 
you are to me, so will I be to you. Yet 
why did you drive my father out ? ” 

Pelias smiled and sighed : “ Men have 
slandered me in that, as in all things. 
Your father was growing old and weary, 
and he gave the kingdom up to me of his 
own will. You shall see him to-morrow, 
and ask him ; and he will tell you the 
same.” 

Jason’s heart leapt in him, when he heard 
that he was to see his father ; and he be- 
lieved all that Pelias said, forgetting that 
his father might not dare to tell the truth. 

“ One thing more there is,” said Pelias, 
“ on which I need your advice ; for though 
you are young, I see in you a wisdom be- 
yond your years. There is one neighbor 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


113 


of mine, whom I dread more than all men 
on earth. I am stronger than he now, and 
can command him : but I know that if 
he stay among us, he will work my ruin 
in the end. Can you give me a plan, 
Jason, by which I can rid myself of that 
man ? ” 

After awhile, Jason answered, half laugh- 
ing, “Were I you, I would send him to 
fetch that same golden fleece; for if he 
once set forth after it you would never be 
troubled with him more.” 

And at that a bitter smile came across 
Pelias’s lips, and a flash of wicked joy into 
his eyes ; and Jason saw it, and started ; 
and over his mind came the warning of 
the old man, and his own one sandal, and 
the oracle, and he saw that he was taken 
in a trap. 

But Pelias only answered gently, “ My 
son, he shall be sent forthwith.” 

“You mean me?” cried Jason, starting 
8 


114 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


up, “ because I came here with one sandal ? ” 
And he lifted his fist angrily, while Pelias 
stood up to him like a wolf at bay ; and 
whether of the two was the stronger and 
the fiercer, it would be hard to tell. 

But after a moment Pelias spoke gently 
— “ Why then so rash, my son ? You, and 
not I, have said what is said; why blame 
me for what I have not done ! Had you 
bid me love the man of whom I spoke, and 
make him my son-in-law and heir, I would 
have obeyed you ; and what if I obey you 
now, and send the man to win himself 
immortal fame ? I have not harmed you, 
or him. One thing at least I know, that 
he will go, and that gladly : for he has a 
hero’s heart within him ; loving glory, and 
scorning to break the word which he has 
given.” 

Jason saw that he w T as entrapped : but 
his second promise to Cheiron came into 
his mind, and he thought, “ What if the 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


115 


Centaur were a prophet in that also, and 
meant that I should win the fleece ! ” Then 
he cried aloud, — 

“ You have well spoken, cunning uncle 
of mine ! I love glory, and I dare keep to 
my word. I will go and fetch this golden 
fleece. Promise me but this in return, and 
keep your word as I keep mine. Treat my 
father lovingly while I am gone, for the 
sake of the all-seeing Zeus ; and give me 
up the kingdom for my own, on the day 
that I bring back the golden fleece.” 

Then Pelias looked at him and almost 
loved him, in the midst of all his hate ; and 
said, “ I promise, and I will perform. It 
will be no shame to give up my kingdom 
to the man who wins that fleece.” 

Then they swore a great oath between 
them ; and afterwards both went in, and 
lay down to sleep. 

But Jason could not sleep, for thinking 
of his mighty oath, and how he was to 


116 THE GREEK HEROES. 

fulfil it, all alone, and without . wealth or 
friends. So he tossed a long time upon 
his bed, and thought of this plan and of 
that ; and sometimes Phrixus seemed to 
call him, in a thin voice, faint and low, as 
if it came from far across the sea — “ Let 
me come home to my fathers and have 
rest.” And sometimes he seemed to see 
the eyes of Hera, and to hear her words 
again, — “ Call on me in the hour of need, 
and see if the Immortals can forget.” 

And on the morrow he went to Pelias, 
and said, “ Give me a victim, that I may 
sacrifice to Hera.” So he went up, and 
offered his sacrifice ; and as he stood by 
the altar, Hera sent a thought into his 
mind ; and he went back to Pelias, and 
said— 

“ If you are indeed in earnest, give me 
two heralds, that they may go round to all 
the princes of the Minuai, who were pupils 
of the Centaur with me, that we may fit 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


117 


out a ship together, and take what shall 
befall. 1 ’ 

At that Pelias praised his wisdom, and 
hastened to send the heralds out ; for he 
said in his heart, “ Let all the princes go 
with him, and like him, never return ; for 
so I shall be lord of all the Minuai, and the 
greatest king in Hellas. 


PART III. 


HOW THEY BUILT THE SHIP ARGO IN IOLCOS.' 

So the heralds went out, and cried to all 
the heroes of the Minuai, “ Who dare come 
to the adventure of the golden fleece ? ” 

And Hera stirred the hearts of all the 
princes, and they came from all their 
valleys to the yellow sands of Pagasai. 
And first came Heracles the mighty, with 
his lion’s skin and club, and behind him 
Hylas his young squire, who bore his 
arrows and his how ; and Tiphys, the 
skilful steersman; and Butes, the fairest 
of all men; and Castor and Polydeuces 
the twins, the sons of the magic swan ; 
and Caineus, the strongest of mortals, 
whom the Centaurs tried in vain to kill, 
and overwhelmed him with trunks of pine- 

118 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


119 


trees, but even so he would not die ; and 
thither came Zetes and Calais, the winged 
sons of the north wind ; and Peleus, the 
father of Achilles, whose bride was silver- 
footed Thetis the goddess of the sea. And 
thither came Telamon and Oileus, the 
fathers of the two Aiantes, who fought 
upon the plains of Troy ; and Mopsus, the 
wise soothsayer, who knew the speech of 
birds ; and Idmon, to whom Phoebus gave 
a tongue to prophesy of things to come ; 
and Ancaios, who could read the stars, 
and knew all the circles of the heavens ; 
and Argus, the famed shipbuilder, and 
many a hero more, in helmets of brass 
and gold with tall dyed horse-hair crests, 
and embroidered shirts of linen beneath 
their coats of mail, and greaves of polished 
tin to guard their knees in fight ; with 
each man his shield upon his shoulder, of 
many a fold of tough bull’s hide, and his 
sword of tempered bronze in his silver- 


120 THE GREEK HEROES. 

studded belt, and in his right hand a pair 
of lances, of the heavy white ash-staves. 

So they came down to Iolcos, and all 
the city came out to meet them, and were 
never tired with looking at their height, 
and their beauty, and their gallant bear- 
ing, and the glitter of their inlaid arms. 
And some said, “Never was such a gather- 
ing of the heroes since the Hellens con- 
quered the land.” But the women sighed 
over them, and whispered, “Alas! they 
are all going to their death.” 

Then they felled the pines on Pelion, 
and shaped them with the ax, and Argus 
taught them to build a galley, the first 
long ship which ever sailed the seas. 
They pierced her for fifty oars, an oar for 
each hero of the crew, and pitched her with 
coal-black pitch, and painted her bows 
with vermilion ; and they named her Argo 
after Argus, and worked at her all day 
long. And at night Pelias feasted them 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


121 


like a king, and they slept in his palace- 
porch. 

But Jason went away to the northward, 
and into the land of Thrace, till he found 
Orpheus, the prince of minstrels, where he 
dwelt in his cave under Rhodope, among 
the savage Cicon tribes. And he asked 
him — “ Will you leave your mountains, 
Orpheus, my fellow-scholar in old times, 
and cross Strymon once more with me, to 
sail with the heroes of the Minuai, and 
bring home the golden fleece, and charm 
for us all men and all monsters with your 
magic harp and song ? ” 

Then Orpheus sighed — “ Have I not had 
enough of toil and of weary wandering far 
and wide, since I lived in Cheiron’s cave, 
above Iolcos by the sea ? In vain is the 
skill and the voice which my goddess 
mother gave me ; in vain have I sung and 
labored ; in vain I went down to the dead, 
and charmed all the kings of Hades, tc 


122 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


win back Eurydice my bride. For I won 
her, my beloved, and lost her again the 
same day, and wandered away in my mad- 
ness, even to Egypt and the Libyan sands, 
and the isles of all the seas, driven on by 
the terrible gadfly, while I charmed in vain 
the hearts of men, and the savage forest 
beasts, and the trees, and the lifeless stones 
with my magic harp and song, giving rest, 
but finding none. But at last Calliope, my 
mother, delivered me, and brought me 
home in peace ; and I dwell here in the 
cave alone, among the savage Cicon tribes, 
softening their wild hearts with music 
and the gentle laws of Zeus. And now I 
must go out again, to the ends of all the 
earth, far away into the misty darkness, 
to the last wave of the Eastern Sea. But 
what is doomed must be, and a friend’s 
demand obeyed ; for prayers are the daugh- 
ters of Zeus, and who honors them honors 
him .” 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


123 


Then Orpheus rose up sighing, and took 
his harp, and went over Strymon. And 
he led Jason to the southwest, up the banks 
of Haliacmon and over the spurs of Pindus, 
to Dodona the town of Zeus, where it stood 
by the side of the sacred lake, and the 
fountain which breathed out fire, in the 
darkness of the ancient oak wood, beneath 
the mountain of the hundred springs. And 
he led him to the holy oak, where the black 
dove settled in old times, and was changed 
into the priestess of Zeus, and gave oracles 
to all nations round. And he bade him 
cut down a bough, and sacrifice to Hera 
and to Zeus; and they took the bough 
and came to Iolcos, and nailed it to the 
beak-head of the ship. 

And at last the ship was finished, and 
they tried to launch her down the beach ; 
but she was too heavy for them to move 
her, and her keel sank deep in the sand. 
Then all the heroes looked at each other 


124 : 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


blushing ; but Jason spoke, and said, u Let 
us ask the magic bough; perhaps it can 
help us in our need. 1 ’ 

Then a voice came from the bough, and 
Jason heard the words it said, and bade 
Orpheus play upon the harp, while the 
heroes waited round, holding the pine- 
trunk rollers, to help her toward the sea. 

Then Orpheus took his harp, and began 
his magic song : “ How sweet it is to ride 
upon the surges, and to leap from wave to 
wave, while the wind sings cheerful in the 
cordage, and the oars flash fast among the 
foam ! How sweet it is to roam across 
the ocean, and see new towns and wondrous 
lands, and to come home laden with 
treasure, and to win undying fame ! ” 

And the good ship Argo heard him, and 
longed to be away and out at sea ; till she 
stirred in every timber, and heaved from 
stem to stern, and leapt up from the sand 
upon the rollers, and plunged onward like 



THEY KEPT TIME TO ORPHEUS’ HARP. — P. 125 


















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THE ARGONAUTS. 


125 


a gallant horse; and the heroes fed her 
path with pine-trunks, till she rushed 
into the whispering sea. 

Then they stored her well with food and 
water, and pulled the ladder up on board, 
and settled themselves each man to his 
oar, and kept time to Orpheus’s harp ; and 
away across the bay they rowed southward, 
while the people lined the cliffs ; and the 
women wept while the men shouted, at 
the starting of that gallant crew. 


PART IV. 


HOW THE ARGONAUTS SAILED TO COLCHIS. 

And what happened next, my children, 
whether it be true or not, stands written 
in ancient songs, which you shall read for 
yourselves some day. And grand old 
songs they are, written in grand old roll- 
ing verse ; and they call them the Songs 
of Orpheus, or the Orphics, to this day. 
And they tell how the heroes came to 
Aphetai, across the hay, and waited for 
the southwest wind, and chose themselves 
a captain from their crew : and how all 
called for Heracles, because he was the 
strongest and most huge; but Heracles 
refused, and called for Jason, because he 
was the wisest of them all. So Jason was 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


127 


chosen captain : and Orpheus heaped a 
pile of wood, and slew a bull, and offered 
it to Hera, and called all the heroes to 
stand round, each man’s head crowned 
with olive, and to strike their swords into 
the bull. Then he filled a golden goblet 
with the bull’s blood, and with wheaten 
flour, and honey, and wine, and the bitter 
salt sea- water, and bade the heroes taste. 
So each tasted the goblet, and passed it 
round, and vowed an awful vow : and they 
vowed before the sun, and the night, and 
the blue-haired sea who shakes the land, 
to stand by Jason faithfully, in the adven- 
ture of the golden fleece ; and whosoever 
shrank back, or disobeyed, or turned traitor 
to his vow, then justice should witness 
against him, and the Erinnues who track 
guilty men. 

Then Jason lighted the pile, and burnt 
the carcass of the bull ; and they went to 
their ship and sailed eastward, like men 


128 THE GREEK HEROES. 

who have a work to do ; and the place 
from which they went was called Aphetai, 
the sailing-place, from that day forth. 
Three thousand years and more they sailed 
away, into the unknown Eastern seas ; and 
great nations have come and gone since 
then, and many a storm has swept the 
earth ; and many a mighty armament, to 
which Argo would be but one small boat, 
English and French, Turkish and Russian, 
have sailed those waters since; yet the 
fame of that small Argo lives forever, and 
her name is become a proverb among 
men. 

So they sailed past the Isle of Sciathos, 
with the Cape of Sepius on their left, and 
turned to the northward toward Pelion, up 
the long Magnesian shore. On their right 
hand was the open sea, and on their left 
old Pelion rose, while the clouds crawled 
round his dark pine-forests and his caps 
of summer snow. And their hearts 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


129 


yearned for the dear old mountain, as they 
thought of pleasant days gone by, and of 
the sports of their boyhood, and their 
hunting, and their schooling in the cave 
beneath the cliff. And at last Peleus 
spoke — “Let us land here, friends, and 
climb the dear old hill once more. We are 
going on a fearful journey : who knows if 
we shall see Pelion again ? Let us go up 
to Cheiron our master, and ask his blessing 
ere we start. And I have a boy, too, with 
him, whom he trains as he trained me 
once, the son whom Thetis brought me, 
the silver-footed lady of the sea, whom I 
caught in the cave, and tamed her, though 
she changed her shape seven times. For 
she changed, as I held her, into water, and 
to vapor, and to burning flame, and to a 
rock, and to a black-maned lion, and to a 
tail and stately tree. But I held her and 
held her ever, till she took her own shape 
again, and led her to my father’s house, 

9 


130 THE GREEK HEROES. 

and won her for my bride. And all the 
rulers of Olympus came to our wedding, 
and the heavens and the earth rejoiced 
together, when an immortal wedded mor- 
tal man. And now let me see my son ; 
for it is not often I shall see him upon 
earth ; famous he will be, but short-lived, 
and die in the flower of youth. 1 ’ 

So Tiphys, the helmsman, steered them 
to the shore under the crags of Pelion ; 
and they went up through the dark pine- 
forests toward the Centaur’s cave. 

And they came into the misty hall, be- 
neath the snow-crowned crag ; and saw the 
great Centaur lying with his huge limbs 
spread upon the rock; and beside him 
stood Achilles, the child whom no steel 
could wound, and played upon his harp 
right sweetly, while Cheiron watched and 
smiled. 

Then Cheiron leapt up and welcomed 
them, and kissed them every one, and set 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


131 


a feast before them, of swine’s flesh, and 
venison, and good wine ; and young Achil- 
les served them, and carried the golden 
goblet round. And after supper all the 
heroes clapped their hands, and called on 
Orpheus to sing ; but he refused, and said, 
“How can I, who am the younger, sing 
before our ancient host ? ” So they called 
on Cheiron to sing, and Achilles brought 
him his harp ; and he began a wondrous 
song ; a famous story of old time, of the 
fight between Centaurs and the Lapithai, 
which you may still see carved in stone.* 
He sang how his brothers came to ruin by 
their folly, when they were mad with 
wine ; and how they and the heroes fought, 
with fists, and teeth, and the goblets from 
which they drank ; and how they tore up 
the pine trees in their fury, and hurled 
great crags of stone, while the mountains 
thundered with the battle, and the land 


In the Elgin Marbles. 


132 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


was wasted far and wide ; till the Lapithai 
drove them from their home in the rich 
Thessalian plains to the lonely glens of 
Pindus, leaving Cheiron all alone. And 
the heroes praised his song right heartily ; 
for some of them had helped in that great 
fight. 

Then Orpheus took the lyre, and sang of 
Chaos, and the making of the wondrous 
World, and how all things sprang from 
Love, who could not live alone in the Abyss. 
And as he sang, his voice rose from the 
cave, above the crags, and through the 
tree-tops, and the glens of oak and pine. 
And the trees bowed their heads when 
they heard it, and the gray rocks cracked 
and rang, and the forest beasts crept near 
to listen, and the birds forsook their nests 
and hovered round. And old Cheiron clapt 
his hands together, and beat his hoofs 
upon the ground, for wonder at that magic 
song. 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


133 


Then Peleus kissed his boy, and wept 
over him, and they went down to the ship ; 
and Cheiron came down with them, weep- 
ing, and kissed them one by one, and blest 
them, and promised to them great renown. 
And the heroes wept when they left him, 
till their great hearts could weep no more ; 
for he was kind and just and pious, and 
wiser than all beasts and men. Then 
he went up to a cliff, and prayed for them, 
that they might come home safe and well ; 
while the heroes rowed away, and watched 
him standing on his cliff above the sea, 
with his great hands raised toward heaven, 
and his white locks waving in the wind ; 
and they strained their eyes to watch him 
to the last, for they felt that they should 
look on him no more. 

So they rowed on over the long swell of 
the sea, past Olympus, the seat of the im- 
mortals, and past the wooded bays of 
Athos, and Samothrace, the sacred isle ; 


134 THE GREEK HEROES. 

and they came past Lemnos to the Helles- 
pont, and through the narrow strait of 
Abydos, and so on into the Propontis, 
which we call Marmora now. And there 
they met with Cyzicus, ruling in Asia over 
the Dolions, who, the songs say, was the 
son of .Eneas, of whom you will hear many 
a tale some day. For Homer tells us how 
he fought at Troy ; and Virgil how he 
sailed away and founded Rome ; and men 
believed until late years that from him 
sprang our old British kings. Now 
Cyzicus, the songs say, welcomed the 
heroes; for his father had been one of 
Cheiron’s scholars ; so he welcomed them, 
and feasted them, and stored their ship 
with corn and wine, and cloaks and rugs, 
the songs say, and shirts, of which no doubt 
they stood in need. 

But at night, while they lay sleeping, 
came down on them terrible men, who 
lived with the bears in the mountains, like 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


135 


Titans or giants in shape ; for each of them 
had six arms, and they fought with young 
firs and pines. But Heracles killed them 
all before morn with his deadly poisoned 
arrows ; but among them, in the darkness, 
he slew Cyzicus the kindly prince. 

Then they got to their ship and to their 
oars, and Tiphys bade them cast off the 
hawsers, and go to sea. But as he spoke 
a whirlwind came, and spun the Argo 
round, and twisted the hawsers together, 
so that no man could loose them. Then 
Tiphys dropped the rudder from his hand, 
and cried, ‘‘This comes from the Gods 
above.” But Jason went forward, and 
asked counsel of the magic bough. 

Then the magic bough spoke and an- 
swered, — “ This is because you have slain 
Cyzicus your friend. You must appease 
his soul, or you will never leave this shore.” 

Jason went back sadly, and told the 
heroes what he had heard. And they 


136 THE GREEK HEROES. 

leapt on shore, and searched till dawn ; 
and at dawn they found the body, all rolled 
in dust and blood, among the corpses of 
those monstrous beasts. And they wept 
over their kind host, and laid him on a fair 
bed, and heaped a huge mound over him, 
and offered black sheep at his tomb, and 
Orpheus sang a magic song to him, that 
his spirit might have rest. And then they 
held games at the tomb, after the custom 
of those times, and Jason gave prizes to 
each winner. To Ancaeus he gave a golden 
cup, for he wrestled best of all ; and to 
Heracles a silver one, for he was the strong- 
est of all ; and to Castor, who rode best, a 
golden crest ; and Polydeuces the boxer 
had a rich carpet, and to Orpheus for his 
song, a sandal with golden wings. But 
Jason himself was the best of all the 
archers, and the Minuai crowned him 
with an olive crown ; and so, the songs 
say, the soul of good Cyzicus was ap- 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


137 


peased, and the heroes went on their way 
in peace. 

But when Cyzicus’s wife heard that he 
was dead, she died likewise of grief ; and 
her tears became a fountain of clear water, 
which flows the whole year round. 

Then they rowed away, the songs say, 
along the Mysian shore, and past the 
mouth of Rhindacus, till they found a 
pleasant bay, sheltered by the long ridges 
of Arganthus, and by high walls of basalt 
rock. And there they ran the ship ashore 
upon the yellow sand, and furled the sail, 
and took the mast down, and lashed it in 
its crutch. And next they let down the 
ladder, and went ashore to sport and rest. 

And there Heracles went away into the 
woods, bow in hand, to hunt wild deer; 
and Hylas the fair boy slipt away after 
him, and followed him by stealth, until he 
lost himself among the glens, and sat 
down weary to rest himself by the side of 


138 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


a lake ; and there the water nymphs came 
up to look at him, and loved him, and 
carried him down under the lake to be 
their playfellow, forever happy and young. 
And Heracles sought for him in vain, 
shouting his name till all the mountains 
rang ; but Hylas never heard him, far 
down under the sparkling lake. So while 
Heracles wandered searching for him, a 
fair breeze sprang up, and Heracles was 
nowhere to be found ; and the Argo sailed 
away, and Heracles was left behind, and 
never saw the noble Phasian stream. 

Then the Minuai came to a doleful land, 
where Amycus the giant ruled, and cared 
nothing for the laws of Zeus, but chal- 
lenged all strangers to box with him, and 
those whom he conquered he slew. But 
Polydeuces the boxer struck him a harder 
blow than he ever felt before, and slew 
him ; and the Minuai went on up the 
Bosphorus, till they came to the city of 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


139 


Phineus, the fierce Bithynian king; for 
Zetes and Calais bade Jason land there, 
because they had a Work to do. 

And they went up from the shore 
toward the city, through forests white with 
snow; and Phineus came out to meet 
them with a lean and woful face, and said, 
“Welcome, gallant heroes, to the land of 
bitter blasts, a land of cold and misery ; 
yet I will feast you as best I can.” And 
he led them in, and set meat before them ; 
but before they could put their hands to 
their mouths, down came two fearful mon- 
sters, the like of whom man never saw ; 
for they had the faces and the hair of fair 
maidens, but the wings and claws of 
hawks ; and they snatched the meat from 
off the table, and flew shrieking out above 
the roofs. 

Then Phineus beat his breast and cried, 
“ These are the Harpies, whose names are 
the Whirlwind and the Swift, the daugh- 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


140 

ters of Wonder and of the Amber-nymph, 
and they rob us night and day. They 
carried off the daughters of Pandareus, 
whom all the Gods had blest ; for Aphro- 
dite fed them on Olympus with honey and 
milk and wine ; and Hera gave them 
beauty and wisdom, and Athene’ skill in all 
the arts; but when they came to their 
wedding, the Harpies snatched them both 
away, and gave them to be slaves to the 
Erinnues, and live in horror all their days. 
And now they haunt me, and my people, 
and the Bosphorus, with fearful storms; 
and sweep away our food from off our 
tables, so that we starve in spite of all our 
wealth.” 

Then up rose Zetes and Calais, the 
winged sons of the North-wind, and said, 
“ Do you not know us, Phineus, and these 
wings "which grow upon our backs ? ” An ri 
Phineus hid his face in terror ; but he 
answered not a word. . 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


141 


“Because you have been a traitor, 
Phineus, the Harpies haunt you night and 
day. Where is Cleopatra our sister, your 
wife, whom you keep in prison ? and where 
are her two children, whom you blinded 
in your rage, at the bidding of an evil 
woman, and cast them out upon the 
rocks? Swear to us that you will right 
our sister, and cast out that wicked 
woman ; and then we will free you from 
your plague, and drive the whirlwind 
maidens from the south: but if not, we 
will put out your eyes, as you put out the 
eyes of your own sons.” 

Then Phineus swore an oath to them, 
and drove out the wicked woman; and 
Jason took those two poor children, and 
cured their eyes with magic herbs. 

But Zetes and Calais rose up sadly, and 
said, “ Farewell now, heroes all ; farewell, 
our dear companions, with whom we 
played on Pelion in old times ; for a fate is 


142 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


laid upon us, and our day is come at last, 
in which we may hunt the whirlwinds, 
over land and sea forever ; and if we catch 
them they die, and if not, we die our- 
selves.” 

At that all the heroes wept : but the 
two young men sprang up, and aloft into 
the air after the Harpies, and the battle 
of the winds began. 

The heroes trembled in silence as they 
heard the shrieking of the blasts; while 
the palace rocked and all the city, and 
great stones were torn from the crags, and 
the forest-pines were hurled eastward, 
north and south and east and west, and 
the Bosphorus boiled white with foam, and 
the clouds were dashed against the cliffs. 

But at last the battle ended, and the 
Harpies fled screaming toward the south, 
and the sons of the North-wind rushed 
after them, and brought clear sunshine 
where they passed. For many a league 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


143 


they followed them, over all the isles of 
the Cyclades, and away to the southwest 
across Hellas, till they came to the Ionian 
sea, and there they fell upon the Echi- 
nades, at the mouth of the Achelous ; and 
those isles were called the Whirlwind Isles 
for many a hundred years. But what be- 
came of Zetes and Calais I know not ; for 
the heroes never saw them again : and 
some say that Heracles met them, and 
quarreled with them, and slew them with 
his arrows ; and some say that they fell 
down from weariness and the heat of the 
summer sun, and that the Sun-god buried 
them among the Cyclades, in the pleasant 
Isle of Tenos ; and for many hundred years 
their grave was shown there, and over it a 
pillar, which turned to every wind. But 
those dark storms and whirlwinds haunt 
the Bosphorus until this day. 

But the Argonauts went eastward, and 
out into the open sea, which we now call 


144 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


the Black Sea, but it was called the Euxine 
then. No Hellen had ever crossed it, and 
all feared that dreadful sea, and its rocks, 
and shoals, and fogs, and bitter freezing 
storms ; and they told strange stories of 
it, some false and some half true, how it 
stretched northward to the ends of the 
earth, and the sluggish Putrid Sea, and the 
everlasting night, and the regions of the 
dead. So the heroes trembled, for all their 
courage, as they came into that wild Black 
Sea, and saw it stretching out before them, 
without a shore, as far as eye could see. 

And first Orpheus spoke, and warned 
them, — u We shall come now to the wan- 
dering blue rocks ; my mother warned me 
of them, Calliope, the immortal muse.” 

* And soon they saw the blue rocks shin- 
ing, like spires and castles of gray glass, 
while an ice-cold wind blew from them, 
and chilled all the heroes’ hearts. And as 
they neared, they could see them heaving, 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


145 


as they rolled upon the long sea-waves, 
crashing and grinding together, till the 
roar went up to heaven. The sea sprang 
up in spouts between them, and swept 
round them in white sheets of foam ; but 
their heads swung nodding high in air, 
while the wind whistled shrill among the 
crags. 

The heroes’ hearts sank within them, 
and they lay upon their oars in fear ; but 
Orpheus called to Tiphys the helmsman — 
“ Between them we .must pass; so look 
ahead for an opening, and be brave, for 
Hera is with us.” But Tiphys the cunning 
helmsman stood silent, clenching his teeth 
till he saw a heron come flying mast-high 
toward the rocks, and hover awhile before 
them, as if looking for a passage through. 
Then he cried, “ Hera has sent us a pilot ; 
let us follow the cunning bird.” 

Then the heron flapped to and fro a 
moment, till he saw a hidden gap, and into 

io 


146 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


it he rushed like an arrow, while the heroes 
watched what would befall. 

And the blue rocks clashed together as 
the bird fled swiftly through ; but they 
struck but a feather from his tail, and then 
rebounded apart at the shock. 

Then Tiphys cheered the heroes, and 
they shouted; and the oars bent like 
withes beneath their strokes, as they 
rushed between those toppling ice-crags, 
and the cold blue lips of death. And ere 
the rocks could meet again they had passed 
them, and were safe out in the open 
sea. 

And after that they sailed on wearily 
along the Asian coast, by the Black Cape 
and Thyneis, where the hot stream of 
Thymbris falls into the sea, and Sangarius, 
whose waters float on the Euxine, till they 
came to Wolf the river, and to Wolf the 
kindly king. And there died two brave 
heroes, Idmon and Tiphys the wise helms- 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


147 


man ; one died of an evil sickness, and one 
a wild boar slew. So the heroes heaped a 
mound above them, and set upon it an oar 
on high, and left them there to sleep to- 
gether, on the far-off Lycian shore. But 
Idas killed the boar, and avenged Tiphys ; 
and Ancaios took the rudder and was 
helmsman, and steered them on toward 
the east. 

And they went on past Sinope, and many 
a mighty river’s mouth, and past many 
a barbarous tribe, and the cities of the 
Amazons, the warlike women of the East, 
till all night they heard the clank of anvils 
and the roar of furnace-blasts, and the 
forge-fires shone like sparks through the 
darkness, in the mountain glens aloft ; for 
they were come to the shores of the Cha- 
lybes, the smiths who never tire, but serve 
Ares the cruel War-god, forging weapons 
day and night. 

And at day-dawn they looked eastward, 


148 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


and midway between the sea and the sky 
they saw white snow-peaks hanging, glit- 
tering sharp and bright above the clouds. 
And they knew that they were come to 
Caucasus, at the end of all the earth ; 
Caucasus the highest of all mountains, the 
father of the rivers of the East. On his 
peak lies chained the Titan, while a vul- 
ture tears his heart ; and at his feet are 
piled dark forests round the magic Colchian 
land. 

And they rowed three days to the east- 
ward, while Caucasus rose higher hour by 
hour, till they saw the dark stream of 
Phasis rushing headlong to the sea, and 
shining above the tree-tops, the golden 
roofs of king Aietes, the child of the sun. 

Then out spoke Ancaios the helmsman, 
“We are come to our goal at last; for 
there are the roofs of Aietes, and the woods 
where all poisons grow ; but who can tell 
us where among them is hid the golden 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


149 


fleece ? Many a toil must we bear ere we 
find it, and bring it home to Greece.” 

But Jason cheered the heroes, for his 
heart was high and bold ; and he said, “ I 
will go alone up to Aietes, though he be 
the child of the sun, and win him with soft 
words. Better so than to go altogether, 
and to come to blows at once.” But the 
Minuai would not stay behind, so they 
rowed boldly up the stream. 

And a dream came to Aietes, and filled 
his heart with fear. He thought he saw a 
shining star, which fell into his daughter’s 
lap ; and that Medeia his daughter took it 
gladly, and carried it to the river-side, and 
cast it in, and there the whirling river 
bore it down, and out into the Euxine Sea. 

Then he leapt up in fear, and bade his 
servants bring his chariot, that he might 
go down to the river-side and appease the 
nymphs, and the heroes whose spirits 
haunt the bank. So he went down in his 


150 THE GREEK HEROES. 

golden chariot, and his daughters by his 
side, Medeia the fair witch-maiden, and 
Chalciope, who had been Phrixus’s wife, 
and behind him a crowd of servants and 
soldiers, for he was a rich and mighty 
prince. 

And as he drove down by the reedy 
river, he saw Argo sliding up beneath the 
bank, and many a hero in her, like iim 
mortals for beauty and for strength, as 
their weapons glittered round them in the 
level morning sunlight, through the white 
mist of the stream. But Jason was the 
noblest of all; for Hera who loved him 
gave him beauty, and tallness, and terrible 
manhood. 

And when they came near together and 
looked into each other’s eyes, the heroes 
were awed before Aietes as he shone in 
his chariot, like his father the glorious 
Sun ; for his robes were of rich gold tissue, 
and the rays of his diadem flashed fire ; 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


151 


and in his hand he bore a jeweled scepter, 
which glittered like the stars ; and sternly 
he looked at them under his brows, and 
sternly he spoke and loud— 

“ Who are you, and what want you here, 
that you come to the shore of Cutaia? 
Do you take no account of my rule, nor 
of my people the Colchians who serve me, 
who never tired yet in the battle, and 
know well how to face an invader ? ” 

And the heroes sat silent awhile before 
the face of that ancient king. But Hera 
the awful goddess put courage into Jason’s 
heart, and he rose and shouted loudly in 
answer, “We are no pirates nor lawless 
men. We come not to plunder and to 
ravage, or carry away slaves from your 
land ; but my uncle, the son of Poseidon, 
Pelias the Minuan king, he it is who has 
set me on a quest to bring home the 
golden fleece. And these too, my bold 
comrades, they are no nameless men ; for 


152 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


some are the sons of immortals, and some 
of heroes far renowned. And we too never 
tire in battle, and know well how to give 
blows and to take; yet we wish to be 
guests at your table; it will be better so 
for both.*” 

Then Aietes’s rage rushed up like a 
whirlwind, and his eyes flashed fire as he 
heard ; but he crushed his anger down in 
his breast, and spoke mildly a cunning 
speech, — 

“If you will fight for the fleece with 
my Colchians, then many a man must die. 
But do you indeed expect to win from 
me the fleece in fight ? So few you are, 
that if you be worsted, I can load your 
ship with your corpses. But if you will 
be ruled by me, you will find it better far 
to choose the best man among you, and 
let him fulfil the labors which I demand. 
Then I will give him the golden fleece for 
a prize and a glory to you all.” 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


153 


So saying, he turned his horses and 
drove back in silence to the town. And 
the Minuai sat silent with sorrow, and 
longed for Heracles and his strength ; for 
there was no facing the thousands of 
the Oolchians, and the fearful chance of 
war. 

But Chalciope, Phrixus’s widow, went 
weeping to the town ; for she remembered 
her Minuan husband, and all the pleasures 
of her youth, while she watched the fair 
faces of his kinsmen, and their long locks 
of golden hair. And she whispered to 
Medeia her sister — “ Why should all these 
brave men die ? why does not my father 
give them up the fleece, that my husband’s 
spirit may have rest ? ” 

And Medeia’s heart pitied the heroes, 
and Jason most of all ; and she answered, 
“ Our father is stern and terrible, and who 
can win the golden fleece?” But Chal- 
ciope said, “ These men are not like our 


154 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


men ; there is nothing which they cannot 
dare nor do.” 

And Medeia thought of Jason and his 
brave countenance, and said, “If there 
was one among them who knew no 
fear, I could show him how to win the 
fleece.” 

So in the dusk of evening they went 
down to the river-side, Chalciope and 
Medeia the witch-maiden, and Argus, 
Phrixus’s son. And Argus the boy crept 
forward, among the beds of reeds, till he 
came where the heroes were sleeping, on 
the thwarts of the ship, beneath the bank, 
while Jason kept ward onshore, and leant 
upon his lance full of thought. And the 
boy came to Jason, and said — 

“ I am the son of Phrixus, your cousin ; 
and Chalciope my mother waits for you, to 
talk about the golden fleece.” 

Then Jason went boldly with the boy, 
and found the two princesses standing ; 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


155 


and when Chalciope saw him she wept 
and took his hands, and cried — 

“ 0 cousin of my beloved, go home be- 
fore you die ! ” 

“ It would be base to go home now, fair 
princess, and to have sailed all these seas 
in vain. 1 ’ Then both the princesses be- 
sought him : but Jason said, “ It is too late.” 

“ But you know not,” said Medeia, “ what 
he must do who would win the fleece. He 
must tame the two brazen-footed bulls, who 
breathe devouring flame ; and with them 
he must plow ere nightfall four acres in 
the field of Ares ; and he must sow them 
with serpents’ teeth of which each tooth 
springs up into an armed man. Then he 
must fight with all those warriors; and 
little will it profit him to conquer them ; 
for . the fleece is guarded by a serpent, 
more huge than any mountain pine ; and 
over his body you must step, if you would 
reach the golden fleece,” 


156 THE GREEK HEROES. 

Then Jason laughed bitterly. “ Unjustly 
is that fleece kept here, and by an unjust 
and lawless king ; and unjustly shall I die 
in my youth, for I will attempt it ere 
another sun be set. 1 ’ 

Then Medeia trembled, and said, “No 
mortal man can reach that fleece, unless I 
guide him through. For round it, beyond 
the river, is a wall full nine ells high, with 
lofty towers and buttresses, and mighty 
gates of threefold brass ; and over the 
gates the wall is arched, with golden bat- 
tlements above. And over the gateway 
sits Brimo, the wild witch-huntress of the 
woods, brandishing a pine-torch in her 
hands, while her mad hounds howl around. 
No man dare meet her or look on her, but 
only I her priestess, and she watches far 
and wide lest any stranger should come 
near.” 

“No wall so high but it may be climbed 
at last, and no wood so thick but it may 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


157 


be crawled through ; no serpent so wary 
but he may be charmed, or witch-queen so 
fierce but spells may soothe her ; and I 
may yet win the golden fleece, if a wise 
maiden help bold men.” 

And he looked at Medeia cunningly, and 
held her with his glittering eye, till she 
blushed and trembled, and said — 

“Who can face the fire of the bulls’ 
breath, and fight ten thousand armed 
men ? ” 

“ He whom you help,” said Jason, flat- 
tering her, “ for your fame is spread over 
all the earth. Are you not the queen of 
all enchantresses, wiser even than your 
sister Circe, in her fairy island in the 
West?” 

“ Would that I were with my sister Circe 
in her fairy island in the West, far away 
from sore temptation, and thoughts which 
tear the heart ! But if it must be so— for 
why should you die ?— I have an ointment 


158 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


here ; I made it from the magic ice-flower 
which sprang from Prometheus’s wound, 
above the clouds on Caucasus, in the dreary 
fields of snow. Anoint yourself with that, 
and you shall have in you seven men’s 
strength ; and anoint your shield with it, 
and neither fire nor sword can harm you. 
But what you begin you must end before 
sunset, for its virtue lasts only one day. 
And anoint your helmet with it before you 
sow the serpents’ teeth ; and when the sons 
of earth spring up, cast your helmet among 
their ranks, and the deadly crop of the 
War-god’s field will mow itself, and perish.” 

Then Jason fell on his knees before her, 
and thanked her and kissed her hands ; 
and she gave him the vase of ointment, 
and fled trembling through the reeds. And 
Jason told his comrades what had hap- 
pened, and showed them the box of oint- 
ment; and all rejoiced but Idas, and he 
grew mad with envy. 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


159 


And at sunrise Jason went and bathed, 
and anointed himself from head to foot, 
and his shield, and his helmet, and his 
weapons, and bade his comrades try the 
spell. So they tried to bend his lance, but 
it stood like an iron bar ; and Idas in spite 
hewed at it with his sword, but the blade 
flew to splinters in his face. Then they 
hurled their lances at his shield, but the 
spear-points turned like lead ; and Caineus 
tried to throw him, but he never stirred a 
foot ; and Polydeuces struck him with his 
fist, a blow which would have killed an 
ox ; but Jason only smiled, and the heroes 
danced about him with delight ; and he 
leapt and ran, and shouted, in the joy of 
that enormous strength, till the sun rose, 
and it was time to go and to claim Aietes’s 
promise. 

So he sent up Telamon and Aithalides to 
tell Aietes that he. was ready for the fight ; 
and they went up among the marble walls, 


160 THE GREEK HEROES. 

and beneath the roofs of gold, and stood 
in Aietes’s hall, while he grew pale with 
rage. 

u Fulfil your promise to us, child of the 
blazing sun. Give us the serpents 1 teeth, 
and let loose the fiery bulls ; for we have 
found a champion among us who can win 
the golden fleece.” 

And Aietes bit his lips, for he fancied 
that they had fled away by night ; but he 
could not go back from his promise ; so he 
gave them the serpents’ teeth. 

Then he called for his chariot and his 
horses, and sent heralds through all the 
town; and all the people went out with 
him to the dreadful War-god’s field. 

And there Aietes sat upon his throne, 
with his warriors on each hand,, thousands 
and tens of thousands, clothed from head 
to foot in steel-chain mail. And the people 
and the women crowded to every window, 
and bank, and wall ; while the Minuai 












THE ARGONAUTS. 


161 


stood together, a mere handful in the 
midst of that great host. 

And Chalciope was there and Argus, 
trembling, and Medeia, wrapped closely in 
her veil ; but Aietes did not know that she 
was muttering cunning spells between her 
lips. 

Then Jason cried, “ Fulfil your promise, 
and let your fiery bulls come forth.” 

Then Aietes bade open the gates, and 
the magic bulls leapt out. Their brazen 
hoofs rang upon the ground, and their 
nostrils sent out sheets of flame, as they 
rushed with lowered heads upon Jason ; 
but he never flinched a step. The flame 
of their breath swept round him, but it 
singed not a hair of his head; and the 
bulls stopped short and trembled, when 
Medeia began her spell. 

Then Jason sprang upon the nearest, and 
seized him by the horn ; and up and down 
they wrestled, till the bull fell groveling 

ii 


162 THE GREEK HEROES. 

on his knees; for the heart of the brute 
died within him, and his mighty limbs 
were loosened, beneath the steadfast eye of 
that dark witch-maiden, and the magic 
whisper of her lips. 

So both the bulls were tamed and yoked ; 
and Jason bound them to the plow, and 
goaded them onward with his lance, till he 
had plowed the sacred field. 

And all the Minuai shouted ; but Aietes 
bit his lips with rage ; for the half of 
Jason’s work was over, and the sun was 
yet high in heaven. 

Then he took the serpents’ teeth and 
sowed them, and waited what would befall. 
But Medeia looked at him and at his hel- 
met, lest he should forget the lesson she 
had taught. 

And every furrow heaved and bubbled, 
and out of every clod rose a man. Out of 
the earth they rose by thousands, each 
clad from head to foot in steel, and drew 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


* 163 


their swords and rushed on Jason, where 
he stood in the midst alone. 

Then the Minuai grew pale with fear for 
him; but Aietes laughed a bitter laugh. 
“ See ! if I had not warriors enough already 
round me, I could call them out of the 
bosom of the earth.” 

But Jason snatched off his helmet, and 
hurled it into the thickest of the throng. 
And blind madness came upon them, sus- 
picion, hate, and fear ; and one cried to his 
fellow, “ Thou didst strike me ! ” and 
another, “ Thou art Jason ; thou shalt die ! ” 
So fury seized those earth-born phantoms, 
and each turned his hand against the rest ; 
and they fought and were never weary, 
till they all lay dead upon the ground. 
Then the magic furrows opened, and the 
kind earth took them home into her 
breast ; and the grass grew up all green 
again above them, and Jason’s work was 
done. 


164 THE GREEK HEROES. 

Then the Minuai rose and shouted, till 
Prometheus heard them from his crag. 
And Jason cried — u Lead me to the 
fleece this moment, before the sun goes 
down.” 

But Aietes thought — “ He has conquered 
the bulls ; and sown and reaped the deadly 
crop. Who is this who is proof against all 
magic ? He may kill the serpent yet.” So 
he delayed, and sat taking counsel with 
his princes, till the sun went down and all 
was dark. Then he bade a herald cry, 
“ Every man to his home for to-night. 
To-morrow we will meet these heroes, and 
speak about the golden fleece.” 

Then he turned and looked at Medeia : 
“ This is your doing, false witch-maid ! 
You have helped these yellow-haired 
strangers, and brought shame upon your 
father and yourself ! ” 

Medeia shrank and trembled, and her 
face grew pale with fear ; and Aietes knew 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


165 


that she was guilty, and whispered, “If 
they win the fleece, you die ! ” 

But the Minuai marched toward their 
ship, growling like lions cheated of their 
prey ; for they saw that Aietes meant to 
mock them, and to cheat them out of all 
their toil. And Oileus said, u Let us go to 
the grove together, and take the fleece by 
force.” 

And Idas the rash cried, “ Let us draw 
lots who shall go in first ; for while the 
dragon is devouring one, the rest can slay 
him, and carry off the fleece in peace.” 
But Jason held them back, though he 
praised them; for he hoped for Medeia’s 
help. 

And after awhile Medeia came trembling, 
and wept a long while before she spoke. 
And at last, — 

“ My end is come, and I must die ; for 
my father has found out that I have helped 
you. You he would kill if he dared ; but 


166 THE GREEK HEROES. 

he will not harm you, because you have 
been his guests. Go then, go, and remem- 
ber poor Medeia when you are far away 
across the sea.” But all the heroes 
cried — 

“ If you die, we die with you ; for with- 
out you we cannot win the fleece, and home 
we will not go without it, but fall here 
fighting to the last man.” 

“ You need not die,” said Jason. “ Flee 
home with us across the sea. Show us 
first how to win the fleece ; for you can do 
it. Why else are you the priestess of the 
grove ? Show us but how to win the fleece, 
and come with us, and you shall be my 
queen, and rule over the rich princes of the 
Minuai, in Iolcos by the sea.” 

And all the heroes pressed round, and 
vowed to her that she should be their 
queen. 

Medeia wept, and shuddered, and hid her 
face in her hands ; for her heart yearned 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


167 


after her sisters and her playfellows, and 
the home where she was brought up as a 
child. But at last she looked up at Jason, 
and spoke between her sobs, — 

“ Must I leave my home and my people, 
to wander with strangers across the sea ? 
The lot is cast, and I must endure it. I 
will show you how to win the golden fleece. 
Bring up your ship to the wood-side, and 
moor her there against the bank ; and let 
Jason come up at midnight, and one brave 
comrade with him, and meet me beneath 
the wall.” 

Then all the heroes cried together — “I 
will go ! ” “ and I ! ” “ and I ! ” And Idas the 
rash grew mad with envy ; for he longed 
to be foremost in all things. But Medeia 
calmed them, and said, “ Orpheus shall go 
with Jason, and bring his magic harp ; for I 
hear of him that he is the king of all min- 
strels, and can charm all things on earth.” 

And Orpheus laughed for joy, and clapped 


168 THE GREEK HEROES. 

his hands, because the choice had fallen 
on him ; for in those days poets and singers 
were as bold warriors as the best. 

So at midnight they went up the bank, 
and found Medeia ; and beside came 
Absyrtus her young brother, leading a 
yearling lamb. 

Then Medeia brought them to a thicket, 
beside the War-gods 1 gate ; and there she 
bade Jason dig a ditch, and kill the lamb 
and leave it there, and strew on it* magic 
herbs and honey from the honeycomb. 

Then sprang up through the earth, with 
the red fire flashing before her, Brimo the 
wild witch-huntress, while her mad hounds 
howled around. She had one head like 
a horse’s, and another like a ravening, 
hound’s and another like a hissing snake’s, 
and a sword in either hand. And she 
leapt into the ditch with her hounds, 
and they ate and drank their fill, while 
Jason and Orpheus trembled, and Medeia 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


169 


hid her eyes. And at last the witch-queen 
vanished, and fled with her hounds into 
the woods ; and the bars of the gates fell 
down, and the brazen doors flew wide, and 
Medeia and the heroes ran forward and 
hurried through the poison wood, among 
the dark stems of the mighty beeches, 
guided by the gleam of the golden fleece, 
until they saw it hanging on one vast tree 
in the midst. And Jason would have 
sprung to seize it : but Medeia held him 
back, and pointed shuddering to the tree- 
foot, where the mighty serpent lay, coiled 
in and out among the roots, with a body 
like a mountain-pine. His coils stretched 
many a fathom, spangled with bronze and 
gold ; and half of him they could see, but 
no more ; for the rest lay in the darkness 
far beyond. 

And when he saw them coming, he 
lifted up his head, and watched them with 
his small bright eyes, and flashed his 


170 THE GREEK HEROES. 

forked tongue, and roared like the fire 
among the woodlands, till the forest tossed 
and groaned. For his cry shook the trees 
from leaf to root, and swept over the long 
reaches of the river, and over ^Eetes’s 
hall, and woke the sleepers in the city, till 
mothers clasped their children in their 
fear. 

But Medeia called gently to him; and 
he stretched out his long spotted neck, 
and licked her hand, and looked up in 
her face, as if to ask for food. Then she 
made a sign to Orpheus, and he began his 
magic song. 

And as he sung, the forest grew calm 
again, and the leaves on every tree hung 
still; and the serpent’s head sank down, 
and his brazen coils grew limp, and his 
glittering eyes closed lazily, till he breathed 
as gently as a child, while Orpheus called 
to pleasant Slumber, who gives peace to 
men, and beasts, and waves. 



JASON LEAPT FORWARD ... AND TORE THE FLEECE FROM OFF 

THE TREE-TRUNK. — P. 171 



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THE ARGONAUTS. 


171 


Then Jason leapt forward warily, and 
stept across that mighty snake, and tore 
the fleece from off the tree-trunk ; and the 
four rushed down the garden, to the bank 
where the Argo lay. 

There was a silence for a moment, while 
Jason held the golden fleece on high. 
Then he cried — “ Go now, good Argo, 
swift and steady, if ever you would see 
Pelion more.” 

And she went, as the heroes drove her, 
grim and silent all, with muffled oars, till 
the pine-wood bent like willow in their 
hands and stout Arno groaned beneath 
their strokes. 

On and on, beneath the dewy darkness, 
they fled swiftly down the swirling stream ; 
underneath black walls, and temples, and 
the castles of the princes of the East; 
past sluice-mouths, and fragrant gardens, 
and groves of all strange fruits ; past 
marshes where fat kine lay sleeping, and 


172 THE GREEK HEROES. 

long beds of whispering reeds; till they 
heard the merry music of the surge upon 
the bar, as it tumbled in the moonlight all 
alone. 

Into the surge they rushed, and Argo 
leapt the breakers like a horse ; for she 
knew the time was come to show her 
mettle, and win honor for the heroes and 
herself. 

Into the surge they rushed, and Argo 
leapt the breakers like a horse, till the 
heroes stopped all panting, each man upon 
his oar, as she slid into the still broad 
sea. 

Then Orpheus took his harp and sang 
a paean, till the heroes’ hearts rose high 
again ; and they rowed on stoutly and 
steadfastly, away into the darkness of the 
West. 


PART y. 

HOW THE ARGONAUTS WERE DRIVEN INTO 
THE UNKNOWN SEA. 

So they fled away in haste to the west- 
ward : but Aietes manned his fleet and 
followed them. And Lynceus the quick- 
eyed saw him coming, while he was still 
many a mile away, and cried, “ I see a 
hundred ships, like a flock of white swans, 
far in the east.” And at that they rowed 
hard, like heroes ; but the ships came 
nearer every hour. 

Then Medeia, the dark witch-maiden, 
laid a cruel and a cunning plot ; for she 
killed Absyrtus her young brother, and 

cast him into the sea, and said, “ Ere my 

*73 


m 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


father can take up his corpse and bury it, 
he must wait long, and be left far behind.” 

And all the heroes shuddered, and looked 
one at the other for shame ; yet they did 
not punish that dark witch- woman, because 
she had won for them the golden fleece. 

And when Aietes came to the place, he 
saw the floating corpse ; and he stopped a 
long while, and bewailed his son, and took 
him up, and went home. But he sent on 
his sailors toward the westward, and bound 
them by a mighty curse : “ Bring back 
to me that dark witch-woman, that she 
may die a dreadful death. But if you re- 
turn without her, you shall die by the same 
death yourselves.” 

So the Argonauts escaped for that time : 
but Father Zeus saw that foul crime ; and 
out of the heavens he sent a storm, and 
swept the ship far from her course. Day 
after day the storm drove her, amid foam 
and blinding mist, till they knew no longer 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


175 


where they were, for the sun was blotted 
from the skies. And at last the ship struck 
on a shoal, amid low isles of mud and sand, 
and the waves rolled over her and through 
her, and the heroes lost all hope of life. 

Then Jason cried to Hera : “ Fair queen, 
who hast befriended us till now, why hast 
thou left us in our misery, to die here 
among unknown seas ? It is hard to lose 
the honor which we have won with such 
toil and danger, and hard never to see 
Hellas again, and the pleasant bay of 
Pagasai.” 

Then out and spoke the magic bough 
which stood upon the Argo’s beak : “ Be- 
cause Father Zeus is angry, all this has 
fallen on you ; for a cruel crime has been 
done on board, and the sacred ship is foul 
with blood.” 

At that some of the heroes cried : “ Me- 
deia is the murderess. Let the witch- 
woman bear her sin, and die ! ” And they 


176 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


seized Medeia, to hurl her into the sea and 
atone for the young boy’s death : but the 
magic bough spoke again : “ Let her live 
till her crimes are full. Vengeance waits 
for her, slow and sure ; but she must live, 
for you need her still. She must show you 
the way to her sister Circe, who lives 
among the islands of the West. To her 
you must sail, a weary way, and she shall 
cleanse you from your guilt.” 

Then all the heroes wept aloud when 
they heard the sentence of the oak ; for 
they knew that a dark journey lay before 
them, and years of bitter toil. And some 
upbraided the dark witch- woman, and some 
said, “ Nay, we are her debtors still ; with- 
out her we should never have won the 
fleece.” But most of them bit their lips 
in silence, for they feared the witch’s 
spells. 

And now the sea grew calmer, and the 
sun shone out once more, and the heroes 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


177 


thrust the ship off the sand-bank, and 
rowed forward on their weary course, 
under the guiding of the dark witch-maiden, 

into the wastes of the unknown sea. 

« 

Whither they went I cannot tell, nor 
how they came to Circe’s isle. Some say 
that they went to the westward, and up 
the Ister * stream, and so came into the 
Adriatic, dragging their ship over the 
snowy Alps. And others say that they 
went southward, into the Bed Indian Sea, 
and past the sunny lands where spices 
grow, round ^Ethiopia toward the West ; 
and that at last they came to Libya, and 
dragged their ship across the burning 
sands, and over the hills into the Syrtes, 
where the flats and quicksands spread for 
many a mile, between rich Cyrene and the 
Lotus-eaters’ shore. But all these are but 
dreams and fables, and dim hints of un- 
known lands. 


12 


*The Danube. 


178 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


But all say that they came to a place 
where they had to drag their ship across 
the land nine days with ropes and rollers, 
till they came into an unknown sea. And 
the best of all the old songs tells us, how 
they went away toward the North, till 
they came to the slope of Caucasus, where 
it sinks into the sea ; and to the narrow 
Cimmerian Bosphorus,* where the Titan 
swam across upon the bull ; and thence 
into the lazy waters of the still Maeotid 
lake.f And thence they went northward 
ever, up the Tanais, which we call Don, 
past the Geloni and Sauromatai, and many 
a wandering shepherd-tribe, and the one- 
eyed Arimaspi, of whom old Greek poets 
tell, who steal the gold from the Griffins, 
in the cold Rhiphaian X hills. 

And they passed the Scythian archers, 
and the Tauri who eat men, and the 

* Between the Crimsea and Circassia. 

f The Sea of Azov. 

JThe Ural Mountains? 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


179 


wandering Hyperboreai, who feed their 
flocks beneath the pole-star, until they 
came into the northern ocean, the dull 
dead Cronian Sea. * And there Argo would 
move on no longer ; and each man clasped 
his elbow, and leaned his head upon his 
hand, heart-broken with toil and hunger, 
and gave himself up to death. But brave 
Ancaios the helmsman cheered up their 
hearts once more, and bade them leap on 
land, and haul the ship with ropes and 
rollers for many a weary day, whether over 
land, or mud, or ice, I know not, for the 
song is mixed and broken like a dream. 
And it says next, how they came to the 
rich nation of the famous long-lived men ; 
and to the coast of the Cimmerians, who 
never saw the sun, buried deep in the 
glens of the snow mountains ; and to the 
fair land of Hermione, where dwelt the 
most righteous of all nations ; and to the 


* The Baltic? 


180 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


gates of the world below, and to the 
dwelling-place of dreams. 

And at last Ancaios shouted — “ Endure 
a little while, brave friends, the worst is 
surely past ; for I can see the pure west 
wind ruffle the water, and hear the roar 
of ocean on the sands. So raise up the 
mast, and set the sail, and face what comes 
like men.” 

Then out spoke the magic bough — “ Ah, 
would that I had perished long ago, and 
been whelmed by the dread blue rocks, 
beneath the fierce swell of the Euxine? 
Better so, than to wander forever, dis- 
graced by the guilt of my princes ; for the 
blood of Absyrtus still tracks me, and woe 
follows hard upon woe. And now some 
dark horror will clutch me, if I come near 
the Isle of Ierne.* Unless you will cling 
to the land, and sail southward and south- 
ward forever, I shall wander beyond the 


* Britain ? 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


181 


Atlantic, to the ocean which has no 
shore.” 

Then they blest the magic bough, and 
sailed southward along the land. But ere 
they could pass Ierne, the land of mists 
and storms, the wild wind came down, dark 
and roaring, and caught the sail, and 
strained the ropes. And away they drove 
twelve nights, on the wide wild western 
sea, through the foam, and over the rollers, 
while they saw neither sun nor stars. And 
they cried again, “ We shall perish, for we 
know not where we are. We are lost in 
the dreary damp darkness, and cannot tell 
north from south.” 

But Lynceus the long-sighted called 
gayly from the bows — “ Take heart again, 
brave sailors ; for I see a pine-clad isle, and 
the halls of the kind Earth-mother, with a 
crown of clouds around them.” 

But Orpheus said, “ Turn from them, for 
no living man can land there : there is no 


182 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


harbor on the coast, but steep- walled cliffs 
all round.” 

So Ancaios turned the ship away ; and 
for three days more they sailed on, till 
they came to Aiaia, Circe’s home, and the 
fairy island of the West.* 

And there Jason bid them land, and 
seek about for any sign of living man. 
And as they went inland, Circe met them, 
coming down toward the ship ; and they 
trembled when they saw her ; for her hair, 
and face, and robes, shone like flame. 

And she came and looked at Medeia ; 
and Medeia hid her face beneath her veil. 

And Circe cried, “Ah, wretched girl, 
have you forgotten all your sins, that you 
come hither to my island, where the flowers 
bloom all the year round ? Where is your 
aged father, and the brother whom you 
killed ? Little do I expect you to return 
in safety with these strangers whom you 


* The Azores ? 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


183 


love. I will send you food and wine : but 
your ship must not stay here, for it is foul 
with sin, and foul with sin its crew.'” 

And the heroes prayed her, but in vain, 
and cried, “ Cleanse us from our guilt ! ” 
But she sent them away and said, “ Go on 
to Malea, and there you may be cleansed, 
and return home.” 

Then a fair wind rose, and they sailed 
eastward, by Tartessus on the Iberian 
shore, till thoy came to the Pillars of 
Hercules, and the Mediterranean Sea. 
And thence they sailed on through the 
deeps of Sardinia, and past the Ausonian 
islands, and the capes of the Tyrrhenian 
shore, till they came to a flowery island, 
upon a still bright summer’s eve. And as 
they neared it, slowly and wearily, they 
heard sweet songs upon the shore. But 
when Medeia heard it, she started, and 
cried, “ Beware, all heroes, for these are 
the rocks of the Sirens. You must pass 


184 THE GREEK HEROES. 

close by them, for there is no other chan- 
nel; but those who listen to that song 
are lost.” 

Then Orpheus spoke, the king of all 
minstrels — “Let them match their song 
against mine. I have charmed stones, and 
trees, and dragons, how much more the 
hearts of man ! ” So he caught up his 
lyre, and stood upon the poop, and began 
his magic song. 

And now they could see the Sirens, on 
Anthemousa, the flowery isle ; three fair 
maidens sitting on the beach, beneath a 
red rock in the setting sun, among beds of 
crimson poppies and golden Asphodel. 
Slowly they sung and sleepily, with silver 
voices, mild and clear, which stole over 
the golden waters, and into the hearts of 
all the heroes, in spite of Orpheus’s song. 

And all things stayed around and lis- 
tened ; the gulls sat in white lines along 
the rocks; on the beach great seals lay 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


185 


basking, and kept time with lazy heads ; 
while silver shoals of fish came up to 
hearken, and whispered as they broke the 
shining calm. The Wind overhead hushed 
his whistling, as he shepherded his clouds 
toward the west ; and the clouds stood 
in mid blue, and listened dreaming, like 
a flock of golden sheep. 

And as the heroes listened, the oars fell 
from their hands, and their heads drooped 
on their breasts, and they closed their heavy 
eyes; and they dreamed of bright still 
gardens, and of slumbers under murmur- 
ing pines, till all their toil seemed foolish- 
ness, and they thought of their renown no 
more. 

Then one lifted his head suddenly, and 
cried,. u What use in wandering forever? 
Let us stay here and rest awhile.” And 
another, “Let us row to the shore, and 
hear the words they sing.” And another, 
“I care not for the words, but for the 


186 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


music. They shall sing me to sleep, that 
I may rest.” 

And Butes, the son of Pandion, the fairest 
of all mortal men, leapt out and swam to- 
ward the shore, crying, “ I come, I come, 
fair maidens, to live and die here, listening 
to your song.” 

Then Medeia clapped her hands together, 
and cried, “ Sing louder, Orpheus, sing a 
bolder strain ; wake up these hapless slug- 
gards, or none of them will see the land of 
Hellas more.” 

Then Orpheus lifted his harp, and crashed 
his cunning hand across the strings ; and 
his music and his voice rose like a trumpet 
through the still evening air ; into the air 
it rushed like thunder, till the rocks rang 
and the sea ; and into their souls it rushed 
like wine, till all hearts beat fast within 
their breasts. 

And he sung the song of Perseus, how 
the Gods led him over land and sea, and 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


187 


how he slew the loathly Gorgon, and won . 
himself a peerless bride ; and how he sits 
now with the Gods upon Olympus, a shin- 
ing star in the sky, immortal with his 
immortal bride, and honored by all men 
below. 

So Orpheus sang, and the Sirens, answer- 
ing each other across the golden sea, till 
Orpheus’s voice drowned the Sirens, and 
the heroes caught their oars again. 

And they cried, “We will be men like 
Perseus, and we will dare and suffer to 
the last. Sing us his song again, brave 
Orpheus, that we may forget the Sirens 
and their spell.” 

And as Orpheus sang, they dashed their 
oars into the sea, and kept time to his 
music, as they fled fast away ; and the 
Sirens’ voices died behind them, in the 
hissing of the foam along their wake. 

But Butes swam to the shore, and knelt 
down before the Sirens, and cried, “ Sing 


188 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


on ! sing on ! ” But he could say no more ; 
for a charmed sleep came over him, and a 
pleasant humming in his ears; and he 
sank all along upon the pebbles, and for- 
got all heaven and earth, and never looked 
at that sad beach around him, all strewn 
with the bones of men. 

Then slowly rose up those three fair 
sisters, with a cruel smile upon their lips ; 
and slowly they crept down towards him, 
like leopards who creep upon their prey ; 
and their hands were like the talons of 
eagles, as they stept across the bones of 
their victims to enjoy their cruel feast. 

But fairest Aphrodite saw him from the 
highest Idalian peak, and she pitied his 
youth and his beauty, and leapt up from 
her golden throne ; and like a falling star 
she cleft the sky, and left a trail of glit- 
tering light, till she stooped to the Isle 
of the Sirens, and snatched their prey 
from their claws. And she lifted Butes 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


189 


as he lay sleeping, and wrapt him in a 
golden mist : and she bore him to the peak 
of Lilybaeum ; and he slept there many a 
pleasant year. 

But when the Sirens saw that they were 
conquered, they shrieked for envy and 
rage, and leapt from the beach into the 
sea, and were changed into rocks until this 
day. 

Then they came to the straits by Lily- 
baeum, and saw Sicily, the three-cornered isl- 
and under which Enceladus the giant lies 
groaning day and night, and when he turns 
the earth quakes, and his breath bursts out 
in roaring flames from the highest cone 
of iEtna, above the chestnut woods. And 
there Charybdis caught them in its fearful 
coils of wave, and rolled mast-high about 
them, and spun them round and round ; 
and they could go neither back nor forward 
while the whirlpool sucked them in. 

A.nd while they struggled they saw near 


190 THE GREEK HEROES. 

them, on the other side the strait, a rock 
stand in the water, with a peak wrapt 
round in clouds ; a rock which no man 
could climb, though he had twenty hands 
and feet, for the stone was smooth and 
slippery, as if polished by man’s hand; 
and half way up a misty cave looked out 
toward the west. 

And when Orpheus saw it, he groaned, 
and struck his hands together. And 
“ Little will it help to us,” he cried, “ to 
escape the jaws of the whirlpool ; for in 
that cave lives Scylla, the sea-hag with a 
young whelp’s voice ; my mother warned 
me of her ere we sailed away from Hellas ; 
she has six heads, and six long necks, and 
hides in that dark cleft. And from her 
cave she fishes for all things which pass 
by, for sharks, and seals, and dolphins, and 
all the herds of Amphitrite. And never 
ship’s crew boasted that they came safe by 
her rock; for she bends her long necks 










THE ARGONAUTS. 


191 


down to them, and every month takes up 
a man. And who will help us now ? For 
Hera and Zeus hate us, and our ship is foul 
with guilt ; so we must die, whatever be- 
falls.” 

Then out of the depths came Thetis, 
Peleus’s silver-footed bride, for love of her 
gallant husband, and all her nymphs 
around her; and they played like snow- 
white dolphins, diving on from wave to 
wave, before the ship, and in her wake, and 
beside her, as dolphins play. And they 
caught the ship, and guided her, and passed 
her on from hand to hand, and tossed her 
through the billows, as maidens toss the 
ball. And when Scylla stooped to seize 
her, they struck back her ravening heads, 
and foul Scylla whined, as a whelp whines, 
at the touch of their gentle hands. But 
she shrank into her cave affrighted ; for 
all bad things shrink from good ; and Argo 
leapt safe past her, while a fair breeze rose 


192 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


behind. Then Thetis and her nymphs 
sank down to their coral caves beneath 
the sea, and their gardens of green and 
purple, where live flowers bloom all the 
year round; while the heroes went on 
rejoicing, yet dreading what might come 
next. 

After that they rowed on steadily for 
many a weary day, till they saw a long 
high island, and beyond it a mountain 
land. And they searched till they found a 
harbor, and there rowed boldly in. But 
after awhile they stopped, and wondered ; 
for there stood a great city on the shore, 
and temples and walls and gardens, and 
castles high in air upon the cliffs. And 
on either side they saw a harbor, with a 
narrow mouth, but wide within ; and black 
ships without number, high and dry upon 
the shore. 

Then Ancaios, the wise helmsman, spoke, 
“ What new wonder is this ? I know all 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


193 


isles, and harbors, and the windings of 
all seas ; and this should be Gorcyra, where 
a few wild goatherds dwell. But whence 
come these new harbors, and vast works 
of polished stone ? ” 

But Jason said, “ They can be no savage 
people. We will go in and take our 
chance.” 

So they rowed into the harbor, among 
a thousand black-beaked ships, each larger 
far than Argo, toward a quay of polished 
stone. And they wondered at that mighty 
city, with its roofs of burnished brass, and 
long and lofty walls of marble, with strong 
palisades above. And the quays were full 
of people, merchants, and mariners, and 
slaves, going to and fro with merchandise 
among the crowd of ships. And the heroes’ 
hearts were humbled, and they looked at 
each other and said, “We thought our- 
selves a gallant crew when we sailed from 
Iolcos by the sea ; but how small we look 


194 


THE GREEK HEROES 


before this city, like an ant before a hive 
of bees.” 

Then the sailors hailed them roughly 
from the quay, “ What men are you? — we 
want no strangers here, nor pirates. We 
keep our business to ourselves.” 

But Jason answered gently, with many 
a flattering word, and praised their city 
and their harbor, and their fleet of gallant 
ships. “ Surely you are the children of 
Poseidon, and the masters of the sea ; and 
we are but poor wandering mariners, worn 
out with thirst and toil. Give us but food 
and water, and we will go on our voyage 
in peace.” 

Then the sailors laughed and answered, 
“ Stranger, you are no fool ; you talk like 
an honest man, and you shall find us hon- 
est too. We are the children of Poseidon, 
and the masters of the sea; but come 
ashore to us, and you shall have the best 
that we can give.” 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


195 


So they limped ashore, all stiff and weary, 
with long ragged beards and sunburnt 
cheeks, and garments torn and weather- 
stained, and weapons rusted with the 
spray while the sailors laughed at them 
(for they were rough-tongued, though 
their hearts were frank and kind.) And 
one said, “ These fellows are but raw 
sailors ; they look as if they had been 
seasick all the day.” And another, “ Their 
legs have grown crooked with much row- 
ing, till they waddle in their walk like 
ducks.” 

At that Idas the rash would have struck 
them ; but Jason held him back, till one 
of the merchant kings spoke to them, a 
tall and stately man. 

“ Do not be angry, strangers ; the sailor 
boys must have their jest. But we will 
treat you justly and kindly, for strangers 
and poor men come from God ; and you 
seem no common sailors by your strength, 


196 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


and height, and weapons. Come up with 
me to the palace of Alcinous, the rich sea- 
going king, and we will feast you well and 
heartily ; and after that you shall tell us 
your name.” 

But Medeia hung hack, and trembled, 
and whispered in Jason’s ear, “ We are 
betrayed, and are going to our ruin ; for I 
see my countrymen among the crowd ; 
dark-eyed Colclii in steel mail-shirts, such 
as they wear in my father’s land.” 

“ It is too late to turn,” said Jason. And 
he spoke to the merchant king — “What 
country is this, good sir ; and what is this 
new-built town ? ” 

“ This is the land of the Phaeaces, be- 
loved by all the Immortals ; for they come 
hither and feast like friends with us, and 
sit by our side in the hall. Hither we came 
from Liburnia to escape the unrightous 
Cyclopes; for they robbed us, peaceful 
merchants, of our hard-earned wares and 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


197 


wealth. So Nausithous, the son of Poseidon 
brought us hither, and died in peace ; and 
now his son Alcinous rules us, and Arete 
the wisest of queens.” 

So they went up across the square, and 
wondered still more as they went ; for 
along the quays lay in order great cables, 
and yards, and masts, before the fair tem- 
ple of Poseidon, the blue-haired king of 
the seas. And round the square worked 
the shipwrights, as many in number as 
ants, twining ropes, and hewing timber, 
and smoothing long yards and oars. And 
the Minuai went on in silence through 
clean white marble streets, till they came 
to the hall of Alcinous, and they wondered 
then still more. For the lofty palace 
shone aloft in the sun, with walls of plated 
brass, from the threshold to the innermost 
chamber, and the doors were of silver and 
gold. And on each side of the doorway 
sat living dogs of gold, who never grew 


198 THE GREEK HEROES. 

old or died, so well Hephaistus had made 
them in his forges in smoking Lemnos, 
and gave them to Alcinous to guard his 
gates by night. And within, against the 
walls, stood thrones on either side, down 
the whole length of the hall, strewn with 
rich glossy shawls ; and on them the mer- 
chant kings of those crafty sea-roving 
Phaeaces sat eating and drinking in pride, 
and feasting there all the year round. 
And boys of molten gold stood each on a 
polished altar, and held torches in their 
hands, to give light all night to the guests. 
And round the house sat fifty maid-serv- 
ants, some grinding the meal in the mill, 
some turning the spindle, some weaving 
at the loom, while their hands twinkled as 
they passed the shuttle, like quivering 
aspen leaves. 

And outside before the palace a great 
garden was walled round, filled full of 
stately fruit-trees, with olives and sweet 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


109 


figs, and pomegranates, pears, and apples, 
which bore the whole year round. For the 
rich southwest wind fed them, till pear 
grew ripe on pear, fig on fig, and grape on 
grape, all the winter and the spring. And 
at the further end gay flower-beds bloomed 
through all seasons of the year ; and two 
fair fountains rose, and ran, one through 
the garden-grounds, and one beneath the 
palace gate, to water all the town. Such 
noble gifts the heavens had given to 
Alcinous the wise. 

So they went in, and saw him sitting, 
like Poseidon, on his throne, with his golden 
scepter by him, in garments stiff with gold, 
and in his hand a sculptured goblet, as he 
pledged the merchant kings; and beside 
him stood Arete, his wise and lovely queen, 
and leaned against a pillar, as she spun 
her golden threads. 

Then Alcinous rose, and welcomed them, 
and hade them sit and eat ; and the serv- 


200 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


ants brought them tables, and bread, and 
meat, and wine. 

But Medeia went on trembling toward 
Arete the fair queen, and fell at her knees, 
and clasped them, and cried weeping as 
she knelt, — 

“ I am your guest, fair queen, and I en- 
treat you by Zeus from whom prayers come. 
Do not send me back to my father, to die 
some dreadful death ; but let me go my 
way, and bear my burden. Have I not had 
enough of punishment and shame ? ” 

“ Who are you, strange maiden ? and 
what is the meaning of your prayer ?” 

“I am Medeia, daughter of Aietes, and 
I saw my countrymen here to-day ; and I 
know that they are come to find me, and 
take me home to die some dreadful 
death.” 

Then Arete frowned, and said — “Lead 
this girl in, my maidens ; and let the kings 
decide, not I.” 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


201 


And Alcinous leapt up from his throne, 
and cried, u Speak, strangers, who are you ? 
And who is this maiden ?” 

“We are the heroes of the Minuai,” said 
Jason ; “ and this maiden has spoken truth. 
We are the men who took the golden fleece, 
the men whose fame has run round every 
shore. We came hither out of the ocean, 
after sorrows such as man never saw be- 
fore. We went out many, and come back 
few, for many a noble comrade have we 
lost. So let us go, as you should let your 
guests go, in peace; that the world may 
say, ‘ Alcinous is a just king.’ v 

But Alcinous frowned, and stood deep in 
thought ; and at last he spoke — 

“ Had not the deed been done, which is 
done, I should have said this day to my- 
self, 4 It is an honor to Alcinous, and to his 
children after him, that the far-famed 
Argonauts are his guests.’ But these Col- 
chi are my guests, as you are; and for 


202 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


this month they have waited here with all 
their fleet ; for they have hunted all 
the seas of Hellas, and could not find you, 
and dared neither go further, nor go 
home . 17 

“ Let them choose out their champions, 
and we will fight them, man for man . 11 

“ No guest of ours shall fight upon our 
island ; and if you go outside, they will 
out-number you. I will do justice be 
tween you ; for I know and do what is 
right.” 

Then he turned to his kings, and said : 
“ This may stand over till to-morrow. To- 
night we will feast our guests, and hear the 
story of all their wanderings, and how they 
came hither out of the ocean.” 

So Alcinous bade the servants take the 
heroes in, and bathe them, and give them 
clothes. And they were glad when they 
saw the warm water, for it was long since 
they had bathed. And they washed off the 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


203 


sea-salt from their limbs, and anointed 
themselves from head to foot with oil, and 
combed out their golden hair. Then they 
came back again into the hall, while the 
merchant-kings rose up to do them honor. 
And each man said to his neighbor : “No 
wonder that these men won fame. How 
they stand now like Giants, or Titans, or 
Immortals come down from Olympus, 
though many a winter has worn them, 
and many a fearful storm. What must 
they have been when they sailed from 
Iolcos, in the bloom of their youth, long 
ago ? ” 

Then they went out to the garden ; and 
the merchant-princes said : “ Heroes, run 
races with us. Let us see whose feet are 
nimblest.” 

“We cannot race against you, for our 
limbs are stiff from sea ; and we have lost 
our two swift comrades, the sons of the 
north wind. But do not think us cowards : 


204 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


if you wish to try our strength, we will 
shoot, and box, and wrestle, against any 
men on earth.” 

And Alcinous smiled, and answered : “ I 
believe you, gallant guests ; with your long 
limbs and broad shoulders, we could never 
match you here. For we care nothing 
here for boxing, or for shooting with the 
bow : but for feasts, and songs, and harp- 
ing, and dancing, and running races, to 
stretch our limbs on shore.” 

So they danced there and ran races, the 
jolly merchant kings, till the night fell, 
and all went in. 

And then they ate and drank, and com- 
forted their weary souls, till Alcinous called 
a herald, and bade him go and fetch the 
harper. 

The herald went out, and fetched the 
harper, and led him in by the hand ; and 
Alcinous cut him a piece of meat from the 
fattest of the haunch, and sent it to him, 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


205 


and said : “ Sing to us, noble harper, and 
rejoice the heroes’ hearts.” 

So the harper played and sang, while 
the dancers danced strange figures; and 
after that the tumblers showed their tricks, 
till the heroes laughed again. 

Then, “ Tell me, heroes,” asked Alcinous, 
“ you who have sailed the ocean round, and 
seen the manners of all nations, have you 
seen such dancers as ours here ? or heard 
such music and such singing? We hold 
ours to be the best on earth.” 

“ Such dancing we have never seen,” said 
Orpheus ; “ and your singer is a happy 
man; for Phoebus himself must have 
taught him, or else he is the son of a Muse ; 
as I am also, and have sung once or twice, 
though not so well as he.” 

“ Sing to us, then, noble stranger,” said 
Alcinous ; “ and we will give you precious 
gifts.” 

So Orpheus took his magic harp, and 


206 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


sang to them a stirring song of their voyage 
from Iolcos, and their dangers, and how 
they won the golden fleece ; and of Medeia’s 
love, and how she helped them, and went 
with them over land and sea ; and of all 
their fearful dangers, from monsters, and 
rocks, and storms, till the heart of Arete 
was softened, and all the women wept. 
And the merchant kings rose up, each man 
from off his golden throne, and clapped 
their hands, and shouted : “ Hail to the 
noble Argonauts, who sailed the unknown 
sea ! ” 

Then he went on, and told their journey 
over the sluggish northern main, and 
through the shoreless outer ocean, to the 
fairy island of the west ; and of the Sirens, 
and Scylla, and Charybdis, and all the 
wonders they had seen, till midnight 
passed, and the day dawned ; hut the kings 
never thought of sleep. Each man sat still 
and listened, with his chin upon his hand. 


THE ARGONAUTS. 207 

And at last when Orpheus had ended, 
they all went thoughtful out, and the heroes 
lay down to sleep, beneath the sounding 
porch outside, where Arete had strewn 
them rugs and carpets, in the sweet still 
summer night. 

But Arete pleaded hard with her husband 
for Medeia, for her heart was softened. 
And she said : “ The Gods will punish her, 
not we. After all, she is our guest and my 
suppliant, and prayers are the daughters 
of Zeus. And who, too, dare part man 
and wife, after all they have endured to- 
gether ? ” 

And Alcinous smiled. “The minstrel’s 
song has charmed you ; but I must remem- 
ber what is right ; for songs cannot alter 
justice ; and I must be faithful to my name. 
Alcinous I am called, the man of sturdy 
sense, and Alcinous I will be.” But for all 
that, Arete besought him, until she won 
him round. 


208 THE GREEK HEROES. 

So next morning he sent a herald, and 
called the kings into the square, and said : 
“ This is a puzzling matter ; remember but 
one thing. These Minuai live close by us, 
and we may meet them often on the seas ; 
but Aietes lives afar off, and we have only 
heard his name. Which, then, of the two 
is it safer to offend, the men near us, or 
the men far off ? ” 

The princes laughed, and praised his 
wisdom; and Alcinous called the heroes 
to the square, and the Colchi also ; and 
they came and stood opposite each 
other: but Medeia stayed in the palace. 
Then Alcinous spoke, — “ Heroes of the 
Colchi, what is your errand about this 
lady?” 

“ To carry her home with us, that she 
may die a shameful death : but if we re- 
turn without her, we must die the death 
she should have died.” 

“What say you to this, Jason the 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


209 


HMid?” said Alcinous, turning to the 
Minuai. 

“ I say,” said the cunning Jason, “ that 
they are come here on a bootless errand. 
Do you think that you can make her follow 
you, heroes of the Colchi ? her, who knows 
all spells and charms ? She will cast away 
your ships on quicksands, or call down on 
you Brimo the wild huntress ; or the chains 
will fall from off her wrists, and she will 
escape in her dragon-car: or if not thus, 
some other way ; for she has a thousand 
plans and wiles. And why return home 
at all, brave heroes, and face the long seas 
again, and the Bosphorus, and the stormy 
Euxine, and double all your toil ? There is 
many a fair land round these coasts, which 
waits for gallant men like you. Better to 
settle there, and build a city, and let Aietes 
and Colchis help themselves.” 

Then a murmur rose among the Colchi, 
and some cried, “He has spoken well;” 


210 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


and some, “We have had enough of roving, 
we will sail the seas no more ! ” And the 
chief said at last, “ Be it so, then ; a plague 
she has been to us, and a plague to the 
house of her father, and a plague she will 
be to you. Take her, since you are no 
wiser ; and we will sail away toward the 
north.” 

Then Alcinous gave them food, and water, 
and garments, and rich presents of all 
sorts ; and he gave the same to the Minuai, 
and sent them all away in peace. 

So Jason kept the dark witch-maiden to 
breed him woe and shame : and the Colchi 
went northward into the Adriatic, and 
settled, and built towns along the shore. 

Then the heroes rowed away to the east- 
ward, to reach Hellas their beloved land ; 
but a storm came down upon them, and 
swept them far away toward the south. 
And they rowed till they were spent with 
struggling, through the darkness and the 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


211 


blinding rain, but where they were they 
could not tell, and they gave up all hope 
of life. And at last they touched the 
ground, and when daylight came they 
waded to the shore ; and saw nothing round 
but sand, and desolate salt pools ; for they 
had come to the quicksands of the Syrtis, 
and the dreary treeless flats, which lie be- 
tween Numidia and Cyrene, on the burning 
shore of Africa. And there they wandered 
starving for many a weary day, ere they 
could launch their ship again, and gain 
the open sea. And there Canthus was 
killed while he was trying to drive off sheep, 
by a stone which a herdsman threw. 

And there too Mopsus died, the seer 
who knew the voices of all birds : but he 
could not foretell his own end, for he was 
bitten in the foot by a snake, one of those 
which sprang from the Gorgon’s head when 
Perseus carried it across the sands. 

At last they rowed away toward the 


212 THE GREEK HEROES. 

northward, for many a weary day, till 
their water was spent, and their food 
eaten ; and they were worn out with 
hunger and thirst. But at last they saw 
a long steep island, and a blue peak high 
among the clouds ; and they knew it for 
the peak of Ida, and the famous land of 
Crete. And they said, “We will land in 
Crete, and see Minos the just king, and 
all his glory and his wealth ; at least he 
will treat us hospitably, and let us fill our 
water-casks upon the shore.” 

But when they came nearer to the island 
they saw a wondrous sight upon the cliffs. 
For on a cape to the westward stood a 
giant, taller than any mountain pine ; who 
glittered aloft against the sky like a tower 
of burnished brass. He turned and looked 
on all sides round him, till he saw the 
Argo and her crew; and when he saw 
them he came toward them, more swiftly 
than the swiftest horse, leaping across the 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


213 


glens at a bound, and striding at one step 
from down to down. And when he came 
abreast of them he brandished his arms up 
and down, as a ship hoists and lowers her 
yards, and shouted with his brazen throat 
like a trumpet from off the hills — “ You are 
pirates, you are robbers ! If you dare land 
here you die.’ 

Then the heroes cried, “We are no 
pirates. We are all good men and true; 
and all we ask is food and water:” but 
the Giant cried the more — 

“ You are robbers, you are pirates all ; 
I know you ; and if you land, you shall 
die the death.” 

Then he waved his arms again as a 
signal, and they saw the people flying 
inland, driving their flocks before them, 
while a great flame arose among the hills. 
Then the giant ran up a valley and van- 
ished ; and the heroes lay on their oars in 
fear. 


214 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


But Medeia stood watching all, from 
under her steep black brows, with a cun- 
ning smile upon her lips, and a cunning 
plot within her heart. At last she spoke ; 
“I know this giant. I heard of him in 
the East. Hephaistos the Fire King made 
him, in his forge in ^?Etna beneath the 
earth, and called him Talos, and gave him 
to Minos for a servant, to guard the coast 
of Crete. Thrice a day he walks round 
the island, and never stops to sleep ; and 
if strangers land he leaps into his furnace, 
which flames there among the hills ; and 
when he is red-hot he rushes on them, and 
burns them in his brazen hands.” 

Then all the heroes cried, “What shall 
we do, wise Medeia ? We must have water, 
or we die of thirst. Flesh and blood we 
can face fairly ; but who can face this red- 
hot brass ? ” 

“ I can face red-hot brass, if the tale I 
hear be true. For they say that he has 


THE ARGONAUTS 215 

but one vein in all his body, filled with 
liquid fire ; and that this vein is closed 
with a nail ; but I know not where that 
nail is placed. But if I can get it once into 
these hands, you shall water your ship 
here in peace.” 

Then she bade them put her on shore, 
and row off again, and wait what would 
befall. 

And the heroes obeyed her unwillingly ; 
for they were ashamed to leave her so 
alone ; but Jason said, “ She is dearer to 
me than to any of you, yet I will trust her 
freely on shore ; she has more plots than 
we can dream of, in the windings of that 
fair and cunning head.” 

So they left the witch-maiden on the 
shore ; and she stood there in her beauty 
all alone, till the giant strode back red-hot 
from head to heel, while the grass hissed 
and smoked beneath his tread. 

And when he saw the maiden alone, he 


216 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


stopped ; and she looked boldly up into his 
face without moving, and began her magic 
song : — 

“Life is short, though life is sweet; 
and even men of brass and Are must die. 
The brass must rust, the fire must cool, 
for time gnaws all things in their turn. 
Life is short, though life is sweet ; but 
sweeter to live forever ; sweeter to live 
ever youthful like the Gods, who have 
ichor in their veins; ichor which gives 
life, and youth, and joy, and a bounding 
heart.” 

Then Talus said, “ Who are you, strange 
maiden ; and where is this ichor of 
youth ? ” 

Then Medeia held up a flask of crystal, 
and said, “ Here is the ichor of youth. I 
am Medeia the enchantress ; my sister 
Circe gave me this, and said, 4 Go and 
reward Talus the faithful servant, for his 
fame is gone out into all lands . 1 So come, 



i? * ■' "d? 


rWmrn 

ViiL Ml ': iTMVCfr 




MEDEIA LIFTED UP HER HANDS BEFORE HIM, AND SANG, TILL TALUS 
SANK BENEATH HER SPELL. — P. 217 






THE ARGONAUTS. 


217 


and I will pour this into your veins, that 
you may live forever young.” 

And he listened to her false words, that 
simple Talus, and came near ; and Medeia 
said, “ Dip yourself in the sea first, and 
cool yourself, lest you burn my tender 
hands ; then show me where the nail in 
your vein is, that I may pour the ichor 
in.” 

Then that simple Talus dipped himself 
in the sea, till it hissed, and roared, and 
smoked ; and came and knelt before Medeia 
and showed her the secret nail. 

And she drew the nail out gently ; but 
she poured no ichor in; and instead the 
liquid fire spouted forth, like a stream of 
red-hot iron. And Talus tried to leap up, 
crying, “ You have betrayed me, false 
witch-maiden ! ” But she lifted up her 
hands before him, and sang, till he sank 
beneath her spell. And as he sank, his 
brazen limbs clanked heavily, and the 


218 THE GREEK HEROES. 

earth groaned beneath his weight ; and the 
liquid fire ran from his heel, like a stream 
of lava to the sea; and Medeia laughed, 
and called to the heroes, “ Come ashore, 
and water your ship in peace.” 

So they came, and found the giant lying 
dead ; and they fell down, and kissed 
Medeia’s feet ; and watered their ship, and 
took sheep and oxen, and so left that in- 
hospitable shore. 

At last, after many more adventures, 
they came to the Cape of Malea, at the 
southwest point of the Peloponnese. And 
there they offered sacrifices, and Orpheus 
purged them from their guilt. Then they 
rowed away again to the northward, past 
the Laconian shore, and came all worn and 
tired by Sunium, and up the long Euboean 
Strait, until they saw once more Pelion, 
and Aphetai, and Iolcos by the sea. 

And they ran the ship ashore ; but they 
had no strength left to haul her up the 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


219 


beach ; and they crawled out on the peb- 
bles, and sat down, and wept till they 
could weep no more. For the houses and 
the trees were all altered ; and all the 
faces which they saw were strange ; and 
their joy was swallowed up in sorrow, 
while they thought of their youth, and all 
their labor, and the gallant comrades they 
had lost. 

And the people crowded round, and 
asked them, “ Who are you, that you sit 
weeping here ? ” 

“We are the sons of your princes, who 
sailed out many a year ago. We went to 
fetch the golden fleece; and we have 
brought it, and grief therewith. Give us 
news of our fathers and our mothers, if 
any of them be left alive on earth.” 

Then there was shouting and laughing, 
and weeping ; and all the kings came to 
the shore, and they led away the heroes to 
their homes, and bewailed the valiant dead. 


220 THE GREEK HEROES. 

Then Jason went up with Medeia to the 
palace of his uncle Pelias. And when he 
came in, Pelias sat by the hearth, crippled 
and blind with age ; while opposite him sat 
^Eson, Jason’s father, crippled and blind 
likewise ; and the two old men’s heads 
shook together, as they tried to warm 
themselves before the fire. 

And Jason fell down at his father’s 
knees, and wept, and called him by his 
name. And the old man stretched his 
hands out, and felt him, and said, “ Do not 
mock me, young hero. My son Jason is 
dead long ago at sea.” 

“ I am your own son Jason, whom you 
trusted to the Centaur upon Pelion ; and 
I have brought home the golden fleece, 
and a princess of the Sun’s race for my 
bride. So now give me up the kingdom, 
Pelias my uncle, and fulfil your promise 
as I have fulfilled mine.” 

Then his father clung to him like a 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


221 


child, and wept, and would not let him 
go ; and cried, “ Now I shall not go down 
lonely to my grave. Promise me never to 
leave me till I die.” 


PAKT VI. 


WHAT WAS THE END OF THE HEROES. 

And now I wish that I could end my 
story pleasantly ; but it is no fault of mine 
that I cannot. The old songs end it sadly, 
and I believe that they are right and wise ; 
for though the heroes were purified at 
Malea, yet sacrifices cannot make bad 
hearts good, and Jason had taken a wicked 
wife, and he had to bear his burden to the 
last. 

And first she laid a cunning plot, to 
punish that poor old Pelias, instead of 
letting him die in peace. 

For she told his daughters, “ I can make 
old things young again ; I will show you 
how easy it is to do.” So she took an 

225 } 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


223 


old ram and killed him, and put him in a 
caldron with magic herbs ; and whispered 
her spells over him, and he leapt out again 
a young lamb. So that “Medeia’s cal- 
dron ” is a proverb still, by which we mean 
times of war and change, when the world 
has become old and feeble, and grows 
young again through bitter pains. 

Then she said to Pelias’s daughters, “ Do 
to your father as I did to this ram, and 
he will grow young and strong again.” 
But she only told them half the spell ; so 
they failed, while Medeia mocked them ; 
and poor old Pelias died, and his daugh- 
ters came to misery. But the songs say 
she cured JEson, Jason’s father, and he 
became young and strong again. 

But Jason could not love her, after all 
her cruel deeds. So he was ungrateful to 
her, and wronged her : and she revenged 
herself on him. And a terrible revenge 
she took — too terrible to speak of here. 


224 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


But you will hear of it yourselves when 
you grow up, for it has been sung in noble 
poetry and music ; and whether it be true 
or not, it stands forever as a warning to 
us, not to seek for help from evil persons, 
or to gain good ends by evil means. For 
if we use an adder even against our en- 
emies, it will turn again and sting us. 

But of all the other heroes there is many 
a brave tale left, which I have no space to 
tell you, so you must read them for your- 
selves; — of the hunting of the boar in 
Calydon, which Maleager killed; and of 
Heracles’s twelve famous labors; and of 
the seven who fought at Thebes ; and of 
the noble love of Castor and Polydeuces, 
the twin Dioscouroi ; how when one died, 
the other would not live without him, so 
they shared their immortality between 
them ; and Zeus changed them into the 
two twin stars, which never rise both at 


once. 


THE ARGONAUTS. 


225 


And what became of Cheiron, the good 

% 

immortal beast ? That too is a sad story ; 
for the heroes never saw him more. 
He was wounded by a poisoned arrow, at 
Pholoe among the hills, when Heracles 
opened the fatal wine-jar, which Cheiron 
had warned him not to touch. And the 
Centaurs smelt the wine, and flocked to 
it, and fought for it with Heracles : but 
he killed them all with his poisoned arrows, 
and Cheiron was left alone. Then Cheiron 
took up one of the arrows, and dropped it 
by chance upon his foot ; and the poison 
ran like fire along his veins, and he lay 
down, and longed to die ; and cried, 
“ Through wine I perish, the bane of all my 
race. Why should I live forever in this 
agony? Who will take my immortality 
that I may die ? ” 

Then Prometheus answered, the good 
Titan, whom Heracles had set free from 

Caucasus, “ I will take your immortality 

15 


226 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


and live forever, that I may help poor 
mortal men.” So Cheiron gave him his 
immortality, and died, and had rest from 
pain. And Heracles and Prometheus wept 
over him, and went to bury him on Pelion : 
but Zeus took him up among the stars, to 
live forever, grand and mild, low down in 
the far southern sky. 

And in time the heroes died, all but 
Nestor the silver-tongued old man ; and 
left behind them valiant sons, but not so 
great as they had been. Yet their fame, 
too, lives till this day ; for they fought at 
the ten years’ siege of Troy ; and their 
story is in the book which we call Homer, 
in two of the noblest songs on earth ; the 
Iliad, which tells us of the siege of Troy, 
and Achilles’s quarrel with the kings : and 
the Odyssey, which tells the wanderings 
of Odysseus, through many lands for many 
years ; and how Alcinous sent him home 
at last, safe to Ithaca his beloved island, 


THE ARGONAUTS. 227 

and to Penelope his faithful wife, and 
Telemachus his son, and Euphorbus the 
noble swineherd, and the old dog who 
licked his hand and died. We will read 
that sweet story, children, by the fire some 
winter night. And now I will end my 
tale, and begin another and a more cheer- 
ful one, of a hero who became a worthy 
king, and won his people’s love. 
















J 















STOEY m -THESEUS. 

PART I. 

HOW THESEUS LIFTED THE STONE. 

Once upon a time there was a princess 
in Troezene, Aithra, the daughter of Pit- 
thens the king. She had one fair son, 
named Theseus, the bravest lad in all the 
land ; and Aithra never smiled but when 
she looked at him, for her husband had 
forgotten her, and lived far away. And 
she used to go. up to the mountain above 
Troezene, to the temple of Poseidon, and 
sit there all day looking out across the bay, 
over Methana, to the purple peaks of 
.ZEgina, and the Attic shore beyond. And 

231 


232 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


when Theseus was full fifteen years old, 
she took him up with her to the temple, 
and into the thickets of the grove which 
grew in the temple-yard. And she led him 
to a tall plane-tree, beneath whose shade 
grew arbutus, and lentisk, and purple 
heather-bushes. And there she sighed, and 
said, “ Theseus, my son, go into that thicket 
and you will find at the plane-tree foot a 
great flat stone ; lift it, and bring me what 
lies underneath.” 

Then Theseus pushed his way in through 
the thick bushes, and saw that they had 
not been moved for many a year. And 
searching among their roots he found a 
great flat stone, all overgrown with ivy, 
and acanthus, and moss. He tried to lift 
it, but he could not. And he tried till the 
sweat ran down his brow from heat, and 
the tears from his eyes for shame : but all 
was of no avail. And at last he came back 
to his mother, and said, “ I have found the 


THESEUS. 


233 


stone, but I cannot lift it ; nor do I think 
that any man could in all Troezene.” 

Then she sighed, and said, “ The Gods 
wait long ; but they are just at last. Let 
it be for another year. The day may come 
when you will be a stronger man than 
lives in all Troezene.” 

Then she took him by the hand, and 
went into the temple and prayed, and 
came down again with Theseus to her 
home. 

And when a full year was past, she led 
Theseus up again to the temple, and bade 
him lift the stone : but he could not. 

Then she sighed, and said the same 
words again, and went down, and came 
again the next year ; but Theseus could 
not lift the stone then nor the year after ; 
and he longed to ask his mother the mean- 
ing of that stone, and what might lie 
underneath it ; but her face was so sad, 
that he had not the heart to ask. 


234 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


So he said to himself, “The day shall 
surely come when I will lift that stone, 
though no man in Troezene can.” And in 
order to grow strong he spent all his days 
in wrestling, and boxing, and hurling, and 
taming horses, and hunting the boar 
and the bull, and coursing goats and deer 
among the rocks ; till upon all the moun- 
tains there was no hunter so swift as 
Theseus, and he killed Phaia, the wild sow 
of Orommuon, which wasted all the land ; 
till all the people said, “ Surely the Gods 
are with the lad.” 

And when his eighteenth year was past, 
Aithra led him up again to the temple, 
and said, “ Theseus, lift the stone this day, 
or never know who you are.” And Theseus 
went into the thicket, and stood over the 
stone, and tugged, at it ; and it moved. 
Then his spirit swelled within him, and he 
said, “ If I break my heart in my body, it 
shall up.” And he tugged at it once more, 



THESEUS LIFTED IT, AND ROLLED IT OVER. — P. 235 




























' ♦ 













THESEUS. 


235 


and lifted it, and rolled it over with a 
shout. 

And when he looked beneath it, on the 
ground lay a sword of bronze, with a hilt 
of glittering gold, and by it a pair of 
golden sandals : and he caught them up, 
and burst through the bushes like a wild 
boar, and leapt to his mother, holding them 
high above his head. 

But when she saw them she wept long 
in silence, hiding her fair face in her shawl ; 
and Theseus stood by her wondering, and 
wept also, he knew not why. And when 
she was tired of weeping, she lifted up her 
head, and laid her finger on her lips, and 
said, “ Hide them in your bosom, Theseus 
my son, and come with me where we can 
look down upon the sea.” 

Then they went outside the sacred wall, 
and looked down over the bright blue sea ; 
and Aithra said, — 

“ Do you see this land at our feet 


236 THE GREEK HEROES. 

And he said, “Yes, this is Troezene, 
where I was born and bred.” 

And she said, “It is but a little land, 
barren and rocky, and looks toward the 
bleak northeast. Do you see that land 
beyond ? ” 

“ Yes, that is Attica, where the Athenian 
people dwell.” 

“ That is a fair land and large, Theseus, 
my son; and it looks toward the sunny 
south ; a land of olive-oil and honey, the 
joy of Gods and men. For the Gods have 
girdled it with mountains, whose veins are 
of pure silver, and their bones of marble 
white as snow ; and there the hills are 
sweet with thyme and basil, and the mead- 
ows with violet and asphodel, and the 
nightingales sing all day in the thickets, 
by the side of ever-flowing streams. There 
are twelve towns well peopled, the homes 
of an ancient race, the children of Kekrops 
the serpent-king, the son of Mother Earth, 


THESEUS. 


237 


who wear gold cicalas among the tresses 
of their golden hair; for like the cicalas 
they sprang from the earth, and like the 
cicalas they sing all day, rejoicing in the 
genial sun. What would you do, son 
Theseus, if you were king of such a land ? ” 

Then Theseus stood astonished, as he 
looked across the broad bright sea, and 
saw the fair Attic shore, from Sunium to 
Hymettus and Pentelicus and all the moun- 
tain peaks which girdle Athens round. 
But Athens itself he could not see, for 
purple iEgina stood before it, midway 
across the sea. 

Then his heart grew great within him 
and he said, “If I were king of such a 
land, I would rule it wisely and well in 
wisdom and in might, that when I died 
all men might weep over my tomb, and 
cry, 1 Alas for the shepherd of his people ! ’ ” 

And Aithra smiled, and said, “ Take 
then, the sword and the sandals, and go to 


238 THE GREEK HEROES. 

JEgeus king of Athens, who lives on Pal- 
las’s hill ; and say to him, ‘ The stone is 
lifted, but whose is the pledge beneath it ? ’ 
Then show him the sword and the sandals, 
and take what the Gods shall send.” 

But Theseus wept — “ Shall I leave you, 
O my mother ? ” 

But she answered, “ Weep not for me. 
That which is fated must be ; and grief is 
easy to those who do naught but grieve. 
Full of sorrow was my youth, and full of 
sorrow my womanhood. Full of sorrow 
was my youth for Bellerophon the slayer 
of the Chimaera, whom my father drove 
away by treason ; and full of sorrow my 
womanhood, for thy treacherous father and 
for thee; and full of sorrow my old age 
will be (for I see my fate in dreams,) when 
the sons of the Swan shall carry me cap- 
tive to the hollow vale of Eurotas, till I 
sail across the seas a slave, the handmaid 
of the pest of Greece. Yet shall I be 


THESEUS. 


239 


avenged, when the golden-haired heroes 
sail against Troy, and sack the palaces of 
Ilium ; then my son shall set me free from 
thraldom, and I shall hear the tale of 
Theseus’s fame. Yet beyond that I see 
new sorrows ; but I can bear them as I 
have borne the past.” 

Then she kissed Theseus, and wept over 
him; and went into the temple, and 
Theseus saw her no more 


PART II. 

HOW THESEUS SLEW THE DEVOURERS OF 
MEN. 

So Theseus stood there alone, with his 
mind full of many hopes. And first, he 
thought of going down to the harbor and 
hiring a swift ship, and sailing across the 
bay to Athens ; but even that seemed too 
slow for him, and he longed for wings to 
fly across the sea, and find his father. But 
after a while his heart began to fail him ; 
and he sighed, and said within himself — 
“What if my father have other sons 
about him, whom he loves ? What if he 
will not receive me? And what have I 
done. that he should receive me? He has 

240 


THESEUS. 


241 


forgotten me ever since I was born ; why 
should he welcome me now ? ” 

Then he thought a long while sadly; 
and at the last he cried aloud, “ Yes ! I 
will make him love me ; for I will prove 
myself worthy of his love. I will win 
honor and renown, and do such deeds that 
^Egeus shall be proud of me, though he 
had fifty other sons ! Did not Heracles 
win himself honor though he was opprest, 
and the slave of Eurystheus ? Did he not 
kill all robbers and evil beasts, and drain 
great lakes and marshes, breaking the hills 
through with his club ? Therefore it was 
that all men honored him, because he rid 
them of their miseries, and made life pleas- 
ant to them and their children after them. 
Where can I go, to do as Heracles has 
done? Where can I find strange adven- 
tures, robbers, and monsters, and the 
children of hell, the enemies of men? I 
will go by land and into the mountains, 

16 


242 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


and round by the way of the Isthmus. 
Perhaps there I may hear of brave adven- 
tures, and do something which shall win 
my father’s love.” 

So he went by land, and away into the 
mountains, with his father’s sword upon 
his thigh, till he came to the Spider moun- 
tains, which hang over Epidaurus and the 
sea, where the glens run downward from 
one peak in the midst, as the rays spread 
in a spider’s web. 

And he went up into the gloomy glens, 
between the furrowed marble walls, till the 
lowland grew blue beneath his feet, and 
the clouds drove damp about his head. 

But he went up and up forever, through 
the spider’s web of glens, till he could see 
the narrow gulfs spread below him, north 
and south, and east and west ; black cracks 
half -choked with mists, and above all a 
dreary down. 

But over that down he must go, for 


THESEUS. 


243 

there was no road right or left; so he 
toiled on through bog and brake, till he 
came to a pile of stones. 

And on the stones a man was sitting, 
wrapt in a bear-skin cloak. The head of 
the bear served him for a cap, and its teeth 
grinned white around his brows ; and the 
feet were tied about his throat, and their 
claws shone white upon his chest. And 
when he saw Theseus he rose, and laughed 
till the glens rattled. 

“ And who art thou, fair tiy, who hast 
walked into the spider’s web ? ” But 
Theseus walked on steadily, and made 
no answer : but he thought, “ Is this some 
robber ? and has an adventure come already 
to me?” But the strange man laughed 
louder than ever, and said, — 

“ Bold fly, know you not that these 
glens are the web from which no fly ever 
finds his way out again, and this down 
the spider’s house, and I the spider who 


244 THE GREEK HEROES. 

suck the flies ? Come hither, and let me 
feast upon you ; for it is of no use to run 
away; so cunning a web has my father 
Hephaistos spread for me, when he made 
these clefts in the mountains, through 
which no man finds his way home.” 

But Theseus came on steadily, and 
asked, — 

And what is your name among men, 
bold spider ? and where are your spider’s 
fangs ?” 

Then the strange man laughed again, — 

“ My name is Periphetes, the son of 
Hephaistos and Anticleia the mountain 
nymph. But men call me Corynetes the 
club-hearer ; and here is my spider’s fang.” 

And he lifted from off the stones at his 
side a mighty club of bronze. 

“ This my father gave me, and forged it 
himself in the roots of the mountain ; and 
with it I pound all proud flies till they 
give out their fatness and their sweetness. 


THESEUS. 


245 


So give me up that gay sword of yours, 
and your mantle, and your golden san- 
dals, lest I pound you, and by ill luck 
you die.” 

But Theseus wrapt his mantle round his 
left arm quickly, in hard folds, from his 
shoulder to his hand, and drew his sword, 
and rushed upon the club-bearer, and the 
club-hearer rushed on him. 

Thrice he struck at Theseus, and made 
him bend under the blows like a sapling ; 
but Theseus guarded his head with his left 
arm, and the mantle which was wrapped 
around it. 

And thrice Theseus sprang upright after 
the blow, like a sapling when the storm is 
past ; and he stabbed at the club-bearer 
with his sword, but the loose folds of the 
bear-skin saved him. 

Then Theseus grew mad, and closed with 
him, and caught him by the throat, and 
they fell and rolled over together; but 


246 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


when Theseus rose up from the ground, 
the club-bearer lay still at his feet. 

Then Theseus took his club and his bear- 
skin, and left him to the kites and crows, 
and went upon his journey down the glens 
on the further slope, till he came to a 
broad green valley, and saw flocks and 
herds sleeping beneath the trees. 

And by the side of a pleasant fountain, 
under the shade of rocks and trees, were 
nymphs and shepherds dancing ; but no 
one piped to them while they danced. 

And when they saw Theseus they 
shrieked ; and the shepherds ran off, and 
drove away their flocks ; while the nymphs 
dived into the fountain like coots, and 
vanished. 

Theseus wondered and laughed : “ What 
strange fancies have folks here who run 
away from strangers, and have no music 
when they dance ! ” But he was tired, and 
dusty, and thirsty ; so he thought no more 


THESEUS. 


247 


of them, but drank and bathed in the clear 
pool, and then lay down in the shade 
under a plane-tree, while the water sang 
him to sleep, as it tinkled down from 
stone to stone. 

And when he woke he heard a whisper- 
ing, and saw the nymphs peeping at him 
across the fountain from the dark mouth 
of a cave, where they sat on green cushions 
of moss. And one said, “ Surely he is not 
Periphetes ; ” and another, “ He looks like 
no robber, but a fair and gentle youth.” 

Then Theseus smiled, and called them, 
u Fair nymphs, I am not Periphetes. He 
sleeps among the kites and crows : but I 
have brought away his bear-skin and his 
club.” 

Then they leapt across the pool, and 
came to him, and called the shepherds 
back. And he told them how he had 
slain the club-bearer : and the shepherds 
kissed his feet, and sang, “ Now we shall 


248 THE GREEK HEROES. 

feed our flock in peace, and not be afraid 
to have music when we dance ; for the 
cruel club-bearer has met his match, and 
he will listen for our pipes no more.” 

Then they brought him kid’s flesh and 
wine, and the nymphs brought him honey 
from the rocks; and he ate, and drank, 
and slept again, while the nymphs and 
shepherds danced and sang. And when 
he woke, they begged him to stay ; but 
he would not. “ I haye a great work to 
do,” he said ; “ I must be away toward the 
Isthmus, that I may go to Athens.” 

But the shepherds said, “ Will you go 
alone toward Athens ? None travel that 
way now, except in armed troops.” 

“As for arms, I have enough, as you 
see. And as for troops, an honest man is 
good enough company for himself. Why 
should I not go alone toward Athens ? ” 

“ If you do, you must look warily about 
you on the Isthmus, lest you meet Sinis 


THESEUS. 


249 


the robber, whom men call Pituocamptes 
the pine-bender; for he bends down two 
pine-trees, and binds all travelers hand 
and foot between them ; and when he lets 
the trees go again, their bodies are torn in 
sunder.” 

“ And after that,” said another, “ you 
must go inland, and not dare to pass over 
the cliffs of Sciron ; for on the left hand 
are the mountains, and on the right the 
sea, so that you have no escape, but must 
needs meet Sciron the robber, who will 
make you wash his feet; and while you 
are washing them he will kick you over 
the cliff, to the tortoise who lives below, 
and feeds upon the bodies of the dead.” 

And before Theseus could answer, 
another cried, “ And after that is a worse 
danger still, unless you go inland always, 
and leave Eleusis far on your right. For 
in Eleusis rules Kerkuon the cruel king, 
the terror of all mortals, who killed his own 


250 THE GREEK HEROES. 

daughter Alope in prison. But she was 
changed into a fair fountain; and her 
child he cast out upon the mountains ; but 
the wild mares gave it milk. And now 
he challenges all comers to wrestle with 
him ; for he is the best wrestler in all 
Attica, and overthrows all who come : and 
those whom he overthrows he murders 
miserably, and his palace-court is full of 
their bones.” 

Then Theseus frowned, and said, “ This 
seems indeed an ill-ruled land, and adven- 
tures enough in it to be tried. But if I am 
the heir of it, I will rule it and right it, 
and here is my royal scepter.” And he 
shook his club of bronze, while the nymphs 
and shepherds clung round him, and en- 
treated him not to go. 

But on he went, nevertheless, till he 
could see both the seas, and the citadel of 
Corinth towering high above all the land. 
And he passed swiftly along the Isthmus, 


THESEUS. 251 

for his heart burned to meet that cruel 
Sinis ; and in a pine-wood at last he met 
him, where the Isthmus was narrowest and 
the road ran between high rocks. There 
he sat upon a stone by the wayside, with 
a young fir-tree for a club across his knees, 
and a cord laid ready by his side ; and over 
his head, upon the fir-tops, hung the bones 
of murdered men. 

Then Theseus shouted to him, “ Holla, 
thou valiant pine-bender, hast thou two fir- 
trees left for me ? ” 

And Sinis leapt to his feet, and answered, 
pointing to the bones above his head, “ My 
larder has grown empty lately, so I have 
two fir-trees ready for thee.” And he 
rushed on Theseus, lifting his club, and 
Theseus rushed upon him. 

Then they hammered together till the 
greenwoods rang : but the metal was 
tougher than the pine ; and Sinis’s club 
broke right across, as the bronze came down 


252 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


upon it. Then Theseus heaved up another 
mighty stroke, and smote Sinis down upon 
his face; and knelt upon his back, and 
bound him with his own cord, and said, 
u As thou hast done to others so shall it be 
done to thee.’ 1 Then he bent down two 
young fir-trees, and bound Sinis between 
them, for all his struggling and his pray- 
ers ; and let them go, and ended Sinis, and 
went on, leaving him to the hawks and 
crows. 

Then he went over the hills toward 
Megara, keeping close along the Saronic 
Sea, till he came to the cliffs of Sciron, 
and the narrow path between the moun- 
tain and the sea. 

And there he saw Sciron sitting by a 
fountain, at the edge of the cliff. On his 
knees was a mighty club \ and he had 
barred the path with stones, so that every 
one must stop who came up. 

Then Theseus shouted to him, and said. 













































































THESEUS. 


253 


“ Holla, thou tortoise-feeder, do thy feet 
need washing to-day ? ” 

And Sciron leapt to his feet and an- 
swered— 

“ My tortoise is empty and hungry, and 
my feet need washing to-day. 1 ’ And he 
stood before his barrier, and lifted up his 
club in both hands. 

Then Theseus rushed upon him ; and 
sore was the battle upon the cliff; for 
when Sciron felt the weight of the bronze 
club, he dropt his own, and closed with 
Theseus, and tried to hurl him by main 
force over the cliff. But Theseus was a 
wary wrestler, and dropt his own club, 
and caught him by the throat and by the 
knee, and forced him back against the wall 
of stones, and crushed him up against them, 

r 

till his breath was almost gone. And Sci- 
ron cried panting, “ Loose me, and I will 
let thee pass.” But Theseus answered, “ I 
must not pass till I have made the rough 


254 THE GREEK HEROES. 

way smooth ; ” and he forced him back 
against the wall till it fell, and Sciron rolled 
head over heels. 

Then Theseus lifted him up all bruised, 
and said, “ Come hither and wash my feet.” 
And he drew his sword, and sat down by 
the well, and said, “ Wash my feet, or I 
cut you piecemeal.” 

And Sciron washed his feet trembling ; 
and when it was done, Theseus rose and 
cried, “ As thou hast done to others, so 
shall it be done to thee. Go feed thy tor- 
toise thyself ; ” and lie kicked him over 
the cliff into the sea. 

And whether the tortoise ate him, I know 
not ; for some say that earth and sea both 
disdained to take his body, so foul it was 
with sin. So the sea cast it out upon the 
shore, and the shore cast it back into the 
sea, and at last the waves hurled it high 
into the air in anger ; and it hung there 
long without a grave, till it was changed 


THESEUS. 


255 


into a desolate rock, which stands there in 
the surge until this day. 

This at least is true, which Pausanias 
tells, that in the royal porch at Athens he 
saw the figure of Theseus modeled in clay, 
and by him Sciron the robber, falling head- 
long into the sea. 

Then he went a long day’s journey, past 
Megara, into the Attic land, and high be- 
fore him rose the snow-peaks of Cithaeron, 
all cold above the black pine- woods, where 
haunt the Furies, and the raving Bacchae, 
and the nymphs who drive men wild, far 
aloft upon the dreary mountains, where 
the storms howl all day long. And on his 
right hand was the sea always, and Salamis, 
with its island cliffs, and the sacred strait 
of the sea-fight, where afterwards the 
Persians fled before the Greeks. So he 
went all day until the evening, till he saw 
the Thriasian plain, and the sacred city of 
Eleusis, where the Earth-mother’s Temple 


256 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


stands. For there she met Triptolemus, 
when all the land lay waste, Demeter the 
kind Earth-mother, and in her hands a 
sheaf of corn. And she taught him to 
plow the fallows, and to yoke the lazy 
kine ; and she taught him to sow the seed- 
fields, and to reap the golden grain ; and 
sent him forth to teach all nations, and 
give corn to laboring men. So at Eleusis 
all men honor her, whosoever tills the land ; 
her and Triptolemus her beloved, who gave 
corn to laboring men. 

And he went along the plain into Eleu- 
sis, and stood in the market-place, and 
cried,- 

“ Where is Kerkuon the king of the city ? 
I must wrestle a fall with him to-day. 1 ’ 

Then all the people crowded round him, 
and cried, “Fair youth, why will you die? 
Hasten out of the city, before the cruel 
king hears that a stranger is here.” 

But Theseus went up through the town, 



THESEUS STOOD AND CALLED HIM. — P. 257 
























» 






























































































» 






























































































































THESEUS. 


257 


while the people wept and prayed, and 
through the gates of the palace yard, and 
through the piles of bones and skulls, till 
he came to the door of Kerkuon’s hall, the 
terror of all mortal men. 

And there he saw Kerkuon sitting at 
the table in the hall alone ; and before him 
was a whole sheep roasted, and beside him 
a whole jar of wine. And Theseus stood 
and called him, “ Holla, thou valiant 
wrestler, wilt thou wrestle a fall to- 
day?” 

And Kerkuon looked up and laughed, 
and answered, “ I will wrestle a fall to-day ; 
but come in, for I am lonely and thou weary, 
and eat and drink before thou die.” 

Then Theseus went up boldly, and sat 
down before Kerkuon at the board ; and 
he ate his fill of the sheep’s flesh, and 
drank his fill of the wine ; and Theseus ate 
enough for three men, but Kerkuon ate 
enough for seven. 


258 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


But neither spoke a word to the other, 
though they looked across the table by 
stealth ; and each said in his heart, “ He 
has broad shoulders ; but I trust mine are 
as broad as his.” 

At last, when the sheep was eaten, and 
the jar of wine drained dry, King Ker- 
kuon rose, and cried, “Let us wrestle a 
fall before we sleep.” 

So they tossed off all their garments, 
and went forth into the palace-yard ; and 
Kerkuon bade strew fresh sand in an open 
space between the bones. And there the 
heroes stood face to face, while their eyes 
glared like wild bulls’ ; and all the people 
crowded at the gates, to see what would 
befall. 

And there they stood and wrestled, til] 
the stars shone out above their heads ; up 
and down and round, till the sand was 
stamped hard beneath their feet. And 
their eyes flashed like stars in the darkness 


THESEUS. 


259 


and their breath went up like smoke in 
the night air ; but neither took nor gave a 
footstep, and the people watched silent at 
the gates. 

But at last Kerkuon grew angry, and 
caught Theseus round the neck, and shook 
him as a mastiff shakes a rat ; but he 
could not shake him off his feet. 

But Theseus was quick and wary, and 
clasped Kerkuon round the waist, and 
slipped his loin quickly underneath him, 
while he caught him by the wrist ; and 
then he hove a mighty heave, a heave 
which would have stirred an oak, and 
lifted Kerkuon, and pitched him, right 
over his shoulder on the ground. 

Then he leapt on him, and called, “ Yield, 
or I kill thee ! ” but Kerkuon said no word ; 
for his heart was burst within him, with 
the fall, and the meat, and the wine. 

Then Theseus opened the gates, and 
called in all the people ; and they cried, 


260 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


“You have slain our evil king ; be you now 
our king, and rule us well.'” 

“ I will be your king in Eleusis, and I 
will rule you right and well : for this cause 
I have slain all evil-doers, Sinis, and Sciron 
and this man last of all.” 

Then an aged man stepped forth, and 
said, “ Young hero, hast thou slain Sinis \ 
Beware then of ^Egeus, king of Athens, 
to whom thou goest, for he is near of kin 
to Sinis.” 

“ Then I have slain my own kinsman,” 
said Theseus, “though well he deserved to 
die. Who will purge me from his death, 
for rightfully I slew him, unrighteous and 
accursed as he was ? ” 

And the old man answered, — 

“That will the heroes do, the sons of 
Phytalus, who dwell beneath the elm-tree 
in Aphidnai, by the bank of silver Cephi- 
sus ; for they know the mysteries of 
the Gods. Thither you shall go and be 


THESEUS. 


261 


purified, and after you shall be our 
king.” 

So he took an oath of the people of 
Eleusis, that they would serve him as their 
king, and went away next morning across 
the Thriasian plain, and over the hills 
toward Aphidnai, that he might find the 
sons of Phytalus. 

And as he was skirting the Yale of 
Cephisus, along the foot of lofty Parnes, a 
very tall and strong man came down to 
meet him, dressed in rich garments. On 
his arms were golden bracelets, and round 
his neck a collar of jewels ; and he came 
forward, bowing courteously, and held out 
both his hands, and spoke, — 

“ Welcome, fair youth, to these moun- 
tains ; happy am I to have met you ! For 
what greater pleasure to a good man, than 
to entertain strangers ? But I see that you 
are weary. Come up to my castle, and 
rest yourself awhile.” 


262 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


“I give you thanks,” said Theseus; 
“ but I am in haste to go up the valley, 
and to reach Aphidnai in the Yale of 
Oephisus.” 

“ Alas ! you have wandered far from the 
right way, and you cannot reach Aphidnai 
to-night ; for there are many miles of 
mountain between you and it, and steep 
passes, and cliffs dangerous after nightfall. 
It is well for you that I met you ; for my 
whole joy is to find strangers, and to 
feast them at my castle, and hear tales 
from them of foreign lands. Come up 
with me, and eat the best of venison, and 
drink the rich red wine ; and sleep upon 
my famous bed, of which J all travelers say, 
that they never saw the like. For what- 
soever the stature of my guest, however 
tall or short, that bed fits him to a hair, 
and he sleeps on it as he never slept 
before.” And he laid hold on Theseus’s 
hands, and would not let him go. 


THESEUS. 


263 


Theseus wished to go forwards : but he 
was ashamed to seem churlish to so hos- 
pitable a man ; and he was curious to see 
that wondrous bed ; and beside, he was 
hungry and weary : yet he shrank from 
the man, he knew not why : for though 
his voice was gentle and fawning, it was 
dry and husky like a toad’s ; and though 
his eyes were gentle, they were dull and 
cold like stones. But he consented, and 
went with the man up a glen which led 
from the road toward the peaks of Parnes, 
under the dark shadow of the cliffs. 

And as they went up, the glen grew 
narrower, and the cliffs higher and darker, 
and beneath them a torrent roared, half- 
seen between bare limestone crags. And 
around them was neither tree nor bush, 
while from the white peaks of Parnes the 
snow-blasts swept down the glen, cutting 
and chilling, till a horror fell on Theseus, 
as he looked round at that doleful place. 


264 : 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


And he asked at last, “ Your castle stands, 
it seems, in a dreary region.” 

“Yes, but once within it, hospitality 
makes all things cheerful. But who are 
these ? ” and he looked back, and Theseus 
also ; and far below, along the road which 
they had left, came a string of laden 
asses, and merchants walking by them, 
watching their ware. 

“ Ah, poor souls ! ” said the stranger. 
“Well for them that I looked back and 
saw them ! And well for me too, for I 
shall have the more guests at my feast. 
Wait awhile till I go down and call them, 
and we will eat and drink together the 
livelong night. Happy am I, to whom 
Heaven sends so many guests at once ! ” 

And he ran back down the hill, waving 
his hand and shouting to the merchants, 
while Theseus went slowly up the steep 
pass. 

But as he went up he met an aged man, 


THESEUS. 


265 


who had been gathering drift-wood in the 
torrent-bed. He had laid down his fagot 
in the road, and was trying to lift it 
again to his shoulder. And when he saw 
Theseus, he called to him, and said, — 

“ Oh, fair youth, help me up with my 
burden ; for my limbs are stiff and weak 
with years.” 

Then Theseus lifted the burden on his 
back. And the old man blest him, and 
then looked earnestly upon him, and 
said, — 

“ Who are you, fair youth, and where- 
fore travel you this doleful road ? ” 

“Who I am my parents know: but I 
travel this doleful road because I have 
been invited by a hospitable man, who 
promises to feast me, and to make me 
sleep upon I know not what wondrous 
bed.” 

Then the old man clapped his hands 
together, and cried, — 


266 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


“ 0 house of Hades, man-devouring ; will 
thy maw never be full ? Know, fair youth, 
that you are going to torment and to death ; 
for he who met you (I will requite your 
kindness by another) is a robber and a 
murderer ot men. Whatsoever stranger 
he meets he entices him hither to death ; 
and as for this bed of which he speaks, 
truly it fits all comers, yet none ever rose 
alive off it save me.” 

“ Why ? ” asked Theseus, astonished. 

“ Because, if a man be too tall for it, he 
lops his limbs till they be short enough, 
and if he be too short, he stretches his 
limbs till they be long enough : but me 
only he spared, seven weary years agone ; 
for I alone of all fitted his bed exactly, so 
he spared me, and made me his slave. 
And once I was a wealthy merchant, and 
dwelt in brazen-gated Thebes ; but now I 
hew wood and draw water for him, the 
torment of all mortal men.” 


THESEUS. 


267 


Then Theseus said nothing ; but he 
ground his teeth together. 

“ Escape then,” said the old man, “ for 
he will have no pity on thy youth. But 
yesterday he brought up hither a young 
man and a maiden, and fitted them upon 
his bed : and the young man’s hands and 
feet he cut off ; but the maiden’s limbs he 
stretched until she died, and so both per- 
ished miserably — but I am tired of weeping 
over the slain. And therefore he is called 
Procrustes the stretcher, though his father 
called him Damastes. Flee from him : yet 
whither will you flee ? The cliffs are steep, 
and who can climb them ? and there is no 
other road.” 

But Theseus laid his hand upon the old 
man’s mouth, and said, “ There is no need 
to flee ; ” and he turned to go down the 
pass. 

“ Do not tell him that I have warned you, 
or he will kill me by some evil death;” 


268 THE GREEK HEROES. 

and the old man screamed after him down 
the glen : but Theseus strode on in his 
wrath. 

And he said to himself, “ This is an ill- 
ruled land ; when shall I have done ridding 
it of monsters ? ” And as he spoke, Pro- 
crustes came up the hill, and all the mer- 
chants with him, smiling and talking 
gayly. And when he saw Theseus, he 
cried, “ Ah, fair young guest, have I kept 
you too long waiting ? ” 

But Theseus answered, “ The man who 
stretches his guests upon a bed, and hews 
off their hands and feet, what shall be done 
to him, when right is done throughout the 
land ? ” 

Then Procrustes’s countenance changed, 
and his cheeks grew as green as a lizard, 
and he felt for his sword in haste; but 
Theseus leapt on him, and cried, — 

“ Is this true, my host, or is it false ? ” 
and he clasped Procrustes’s round waist 


THESEUS. 


269 


and elbow, so that he could not draw his 
sword. 

“ Is this true, my host, or is it false ? ” 
But Procrustes answered never a word. 

Then Theseus flung him from him, and 
lifted up his dreadful club ; and before 
Procrustes could strike him he had struck, 
and felled him to the ground. 

And once again he struck him ; and his 
evil soul fled forth, and went down to 
Hades squeaking, like a bat into the dark- 
ness of a cave. 

Then Theseus stript him of his gold 
ornaments, and went up to his house, and 
found there great wealth and treasure, 
which he had stolen from the passers-by. 
And he called the people of the country, 
whom Procrustes had spoiled a long time, 
and parted the spoil among them, and went 
down the mountains, and away. 

And he went down the glens of Parnes, 
through mist, and cloud, and rain, down 


270 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


the slopes of oak, and lentisk, and arbutus, 
and fragrant bay, till he came to the Yale 
of Cephisus, and the pleasant town of 
Aphidnai, and the home of the Phytalid 
heroes, where they dwelt beneath a mighty 
elm. 

And there they built an altar, and bade 
him bathe in Cephisus, and offer a yearling 
ram, and purified him from the blood of 
Sinis, and set him away in peace. 

And he went down the valley by Archar- 
nai, and by the silver-swirling stream, 
while all the people blessed him; for the 
fame of his prowess had spread wide, till 
he saw the plain of Athens, and the hill 
where Athene dwells. 

So Theseus went up through Athens, 
and all the people ran out to see him ; for 
his fame had gone before him, and every 
one knew of his mighty deeds. And all 
cried, “ Here comes the hero, who slew 
Sinis, and Phaia the wild sow of Crom- 


THESEUS. 


271 


myon, and conquered Cercyon in wrestling, 
and slew Procrustes the pitiless. But 
Theseus went on sadly and steadfastly ; 
for his heart yearned after his father ; and 
he said, “ How shall I deliver him from 
these leeches who suck his blood ? ” 

So he went up the holy stairs, and into 
the Acropolis, where iEgeus’s palace stood ; 
and he went straight into HCgeus’s hall, and 
stood upon the threshold, and looked round. 

And there he saw his cousins sitting 
about the table, at the wine ; many a son 
of Pallas, but no -ZEgeus among them. 
There they sat and feasted, and laughed, 
and passed the wine-cup round ; while 
harpers harped, and slave girls sang, and 
the tumblers showed their tricks. 

Loud laughed the sons of Pallas, and 
fast went the wine-cup round ; but Theseus 
frowned, and said under his breath, “ No 
wonder that the land is full of robbers, 
while such as these bear rule.” 


272 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


Then the Pallantids saw him, and called 
to him, half-drunk with wine— “ Holla, tall 
stranger at the door, what is your will to- 
day ? ” 

“ I come hither to ask for hospitality.” 

“Then take it, and welcome. You look 
like a hero and a bold warrior ; and we 
like such to drink with us.” 

“ I ask no hospitality of you ; I ask it of 
-ZEgeus the king, the master of this house.” 

At that some growled, and some laughed, 
and shouted, “ Heyday, we are all masters 
here.” 

“ Then I am master as much as the rest 
of you,” said Theseus ; and he strode past 
the table up the hall, and looked around 
for HCgeus; but he was nowhere to be 
seen. 

The Pallantids looked at him, and then 
at each other ; and each whispered to the 
man next him, “ This is a forward fellow; 
he ought to be thrust out at the door.” 


THESEUS. 


273 


But each man’s neighbor whispered in 
return, “ His shoulders are broad ; will you 
rise and put him out?” So they all sat 
still where they were. 

Then Theseus called to the servants, 
and said, “ Go tell King HCgeus your 
master, that Theseus of Troezene is here, 
and asks to be his guest awhile.” 

A servant ran and told HCgeus, where 
he sat in his chamber within, by Medeia 
the dark witch- woman, watching her eye 
and hand. And when H3geus heard of 
Troezene, lie turned pale and red again ; 
and rose from his seat trembling, while 
Medeia watched him like a snake. 

“What is Troezene to you,” she asked. 
But he said hastily, “Do you not know 
who this Theseus is ? The hero who has 
cleared the country from all monsters ; but 
that he came from Troezene, I never heard 
before. I must go out and welcome him.” 

So H5geus came out into the hall ; and 

18 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


2T4 

when Theseus saw him, his heart leapt 
into his mouth, and he longed to fall on 
his neck and welcome him; but he con- 
trolled himself, and said, “ My father may 
not wish for me, after all. I will try him 
before I discover myself ; ” and he bowed 
low before JEgeus, and said, “I have de- 
livered the king’s realm from many mon- 
sters ; therefore I am come to ask a reward 
of the king.” 

And old ./Egeus looked on him, and 
loved him, as what fond heart would not 
have done? But he only sighed, and 
said,— 

“ It is little that I can give you, noble 
lad, and nothing that is worthy of you ; 
for surely you are no mortal man, or at 
least no mortal’s son.” 

“ All I ask,” said Theseus, “ is to eat and 
drink at your table.” 

“ That I can give you,” said JEgeus, “ if 
at least I am master in my own hall.” 


THESEUS. 275 

Then he hade them put a seat for The- 
seus, and set before him the best of the 
feast ; and Theseus sat and ate so much, 
that all the company wondered at him ; 
but always he kept his club by his side. 

But Medeia the dark witch-woman had 
been watching him all the while. She 
saw how .iEgeus turned red and pale, when 
the lad said that he came from Troezene. 
She saw, too, how his heart was opened 
toward Theseus ; and how Theseus bore 
himself before all the sons of Pallas, like 
a lion among a pack of curs. And she 
said to herself, “ This youth will be master 
here ; perhaps he is nearer to JEgeus 
already than mere fancy. At least the 
Pallantids will have no chance, by the 
side of such as he.” 

Then she went back into her chamber 
modestly, while Theseus ate and drank ; 
and all the servants whispered, “ This, then, 
is the man who killed the monsters ! How 


276 THE GREEK HEROES. 

noble are his looks, and how huge his size ! 
Ah, would that he were our master’s son ! ” 
But presently Medeia came forth, decked 
in all her jewels, and her rich Eastern 
robes, and looking more beautiful than the 
day ; so that all the guests could look at 
nothing else. And in her right hand 
she held a golden cup, and in her left a 
flask of gold ; and she came up to Theseus, 
and spoke, in a sweet, soft, winning voice, — 
“ Hail to the hero, the conqueror, the un- 
conquered, the destroyer of all evil things ! 
Drink, hero, of my charmed cup, which 
gives rest after every toil, which heals all 
wounds, and pours new life into the veins. 
Drink of my cup, for in it sparkles the 
wine of the East, and Nepenthe, the com- 
fort of the Immortals.” 

And as she spoke, she poured the flask 
into the cup ; and the fragrance of the 
wine spread through the hall, like the 
scent of thyme and roses. 


THESEUS. 


277 


And Theseus looked up in her fair face, 
and into her deep dark eyes. And as he 
looked, he shrank and shuddered ; for they 
were dry like the eyes of a snake. And 
he rose, and said, u The wine is rich and 
fragrant, and the wine-bearer as fair as 
the immortals ; but let her pledge me first 
herself in the cup, that the wine may be 
the sweeter from her lips.” 

Then Medeia turned pale, and stammered, 
Forgive me, fair hero ; but I am ill, and 
dare drink no wine.” 

And Theseus looked again into her eyes, 
and cried, “ Thou shalt pledge me in that 
cup, or die.” And he lifted up his brazen 
club, while all the guests looked on aghast. 

Medeia shrieked a fearful shriek, and 
dashed the cup to the ground, and fled; 
and where the wine flowed over the marble 
pavement, the stone bubbled, and crumbled, 
and hissed, under the fierce venom of the 
draught. 


278 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


But Medeia called her dragon chariot, 
and sprang into it and fled aloft, away 
over land and sea, and no man saw her 
more. 

And JEgeus cried, “What hast thou 
done ? ” But Theseus pointed to the stone 
— “ I have rid the land of an enchantment : 
now I will rid it of one more.” 

And he came close to .ZEgeus, and drew 
from his bosom the sword and the sandals, 
and said the words which his mother bade 
him. 

And iEgeus stepped back a pace, and 
looked at the lad till his eyes grew dim ; 
and then he cast himself on his neck and 
wept, and Theseus wept on his neck, 
till they had no strength left to weep 
more. 

Then .ZEgeus turned to all the people, 
and cried, “ Behold my son, children of 
Cecrops, a better man than his father was 
before him.” 


THESEUS. 


279 


Who then were mad but the Pallantids, 
though they had been mad enough before ? 
And one shouted, “ Shall we make room 
for an upstart, a pretender, who comes 
from we know not where ? ” And another, 
“ If he be one, we are more than one ; and 
the stronger can hold his own.” And one 
shouted one thing and one another ; for 
they were hot and wild with wine : but all 
caught swords and lances off the wall, 
where the weapons hung around, ai\d 
sprang forward to Theseus, and Theseus 
sprang forward to them. 

And he cried, “ Go in peace, if you will, 
my cousins ; but if not, your blood be on 
your own heads.” But they rushed at 
him; and then stopped short and railed 
him, as curs stop and bark when they 
rouse a lion from his lair. 

But one hurled a lance from the rear 
rank, which past close by Theseus’s head ; 
and at that Theseus rushed forward, and 


280 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


the fight began indeed. Twenty against 
one they fought, and yet Theseus beat 
them all ; and those who were left fled 
down into the town, where the people set 
on them, and drove them out, till Theseus 
was left alone in the palace, with iEgeus 
his new found father. But before nightfall 
all the town came up, with victims, and 
dances, and songs ; and they offered sacri- 
fices to Athene, and rejoiced all the night 
long, because their king had found a noble 
son, and an heir to his royal house. 

So Theseus stayed with his father all 
the winter ; and when the spring equinox 
drew near, all the Athenians grew sad and 
silent, and Theseus saw it, and asked the 
reason ; but no one would answer him a 
word. 

Then he went to his father, and asked 
him : but -ZEgeus turned away his face and 
wept. 

“ Do not ask, my son, beforehand, about 


THESEUS. 


281 


evils which must happen : it is enough to 
have to face them when they come.” 

And when the spring equinox came, a 
herald came to Athens, and stood in the 
market, and cried, “ 0, people and King of 
Athens, where is your yearly tribute?” 
Then a great lamentation arose throughout 
the city. But Theseus stood up to the 
herald, and cried, — 

“ And who are you, dog-faced, who dare 
demand tribute here? If I did not rev- 
erence your herald’s staff, I would brain 
you with this club.” 

And the herald answered proudly, for 
he was a grave and ancient man, — 

“ Fair youth, I am not dog-faced or 
shameless ; but I do my master’s bidding, 
Minos the King of hundred-citied Crete, 
the wisest of all kings on earth. And you 
must be surely a stranger here, or you 
would know why I come, and that I come 
by right.” 


282 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


“ I am a stranger here. Tell me, then, 
why you came.” 

“ To fetch the tribute which King iEgeus 
promised to Minos, and confirmed his prom- 
ise with an oath. For Minos conquered 
all this land, and Megara which lies to the 
east, when he came hither with a great 
fleet of ships, enraged about the murder 
of his son. For his son Androgeos came 
hither to the Panathenaic games, and over- 
came all the Greeks in the sports, so that 
the people honored him as a hero. But 
when JEgeus saw his valor, he envied 
him, and feared lest he should join the 
sons of Pallas, and take away the scepter 
from him. So he plotted against his life, 
and slew him basely, no man knows how 
or where. Some say that he waylaid him 
by Oinoe, on the road which goes tc 
Thebes ; and some that he sent him 
against the bull of Marathon, that the 
beast might kill him. But iE'geus says 






































» 








THESEUS. 


283 


that the young men killed him from envy, 
because he had conquered them in the 
games. So Minos came hither and avenged 
him, and would not depart till this land 
had promised him tribute, seven youths 
and seven maidens every year, who go 
with me in a black-sailed ship, till they 
come to hundred-citied Crete.” 

And Theseus ground his teeth together, 
and said, “ Wert thou not a herald I would 
kill thee, for saying such things of my 
father : but I will go to him, and know 
the truth.” So he went to his father, and 
asked him ; but he turned away his head 
and wept, and said, “Blood was 'shed in 
the land unjustly, and by blood it is 
avenged. Break not my heart by ques- 
tions ; it is enough to endure in silence.” 

Then Theseus groaned inwardly, and 
said, “ I will go myself with these youths 
and maidens, and kill Minos upon his 
royal throne v 


284 THE GREEK HEROES. 

But -ZEgeus shrieked, and cried, “You 
shall not go, my son, the light of my old 
age, to whom alone I look to rule this 
people, after I am dead and gone. You 
shall not go, to die horribly, as those 
youths and maidens die ; for Minos thrusts 
them into a labyrinth, which Daidalos 
made for him among the rocks, — Daidalos 
the renegade, the accursed, the pest of this 
his native land. From that labyrinth no 
one can escape, entangled in its winding 
ways, before they meet the Minotaur the 
monster, who feeds upon the flesh of men. 
There he devours them horribly, and they 
never see this land again.” 

Then Theseus grew red, and his ears 
tingled, and his heart beat loud in his 
bosom. And he stood awhile like a tall 
stone pillar, on the cliffs above some hero’s 
grave ; and at last he spoke, — 

“ Therefore all the more I will go with 
them, and slay the accursed beast. Have 


THESEUS. 


285 


I not slain all evil-doers and monsters, 
that I might free this land? Where are 
Periphetes, and Sinis, and Kerkuon, and 
Phaia the wild sow ? Where are the fifty 
sons of Pallas ? And this Minotaur shall 
go the road which they have gone, and 
Minos himself, if he dare stay me.” 

“ But how will you slay him, my son ? 
For you must leave your club and your 
armor behind, and be cast to the monster, 
defenseless and naked like the rest.” 

And Theseus said, “ Are there no stones 
in that labyrinth ; and have I not fists 
and teeth? Did I need my club to kill 
Kerkuon, the terror of all mortal men? ” 

Then iEgeus clung to his knees ; but he 
would not hear ; and at last he let him go, 
weeping bitterly, and said only this one 
word, — 

“ Promise me but this, if you return in 
peace, though that may hardly be : take 
down the black sail of the ship, (for I 


286 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


shall watch for it all day upon the cliffs,) 
and hoist instead a white sail, that I may 
know afar off that you are safe.” 

And Theseus promised, and went out, 
and to the market-place where the herald 
stood, while they drew lots for the youths 
and maidens, who were to sail in that 
doleful crew. And the people stood wail- 
ing and weeping, as the lot fell on this one 
and on that : but Theseus strode into the 
midst, and cried, — 

“ Here is a youth who needs no lot. I 
myself will be one of the seven.” 

And the herald asked in wonder, “ Fair 
youth, know you whither you are going ? ” 

And Theseus said, “ I know. Let us go 
down to the black-sailed ship.” 

So they went down to the black-sailed 
ship, seven maidens, and seven youths, 
and Theseus before them all, and the people 
following them lamenting. But Theseus 
whispered to his companions, “ Have hope, 


THESEUS. 287 

for the monster is not immortal. Whore 
are Periphates, and Sinis, and Sciron, and 
all whom I have slain % ” Then their hearts 
were comforted a little : but they wept as 
they went on board, and the cliffs of 
Sunium rang, and all the isles of the 
JEgean Sea, with the voice of their lamen- 
tation, as they sailed on toward tneir 
deaths in Crete. 


PART III. 


HOW THESEUS SLEW THE MINOTAUR. 

And at last they came to Crete, and to 
Cnossus, beneath the peaks of Ida, and to 
the palace of Minos the great king, to 
whom Zeus himself taught laws. So he 
was the wisest of all mortal kings, and 
conquered all the .ZEgean isles; and his 
ships were as many as the sea-gulls, and 
his palace like a marble hill. And he sat 
among the pillars of the hall, upon his 
throne of beaten gold, and around him 
stood the speaking statues which Daidalos 
had made by his skill. For Daidalos was 
the most cunning of all Athenians, and 
he first invented the plumb-line, and the 
auger, and glue, and many a tool with 


THESEUS. 


289 


which wood is wrought. And he first set 
up masts in ships, and yards, and his 
son made sails for them: but Perdix his 
nephew excelled him ; for he first invented 
the saw and its teeth, copying it from the 
backbone of a fish ; and invented, too, the 
chisel, and the compasses, and the potter’s 
wheel which moulds the clay. Therefore 
Daidalos envied him, and hurled him head- 
long from the temple of Athene : but the 
Goddess pitied him, (for she loves the 
wise,) and changed him into a partridge, 
which flits forever about the hills. And 
Daidalos fled to Crete, to Minos, and 
worked for him many a year, till he did a 
shameful deed, at which the sun hid his 
face on high. 

Then he fled from the anger of Minos, 
he and Icaros his son having made them- 
selves wings of feathers, and fixed the 
feathers with wax. So they flew over the 

sea toward Sicily; but Icaros flew too 

19 


290 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


near the sun : and the wax of his wings 
was melted, and he fell into the Icarian 
Sea. But Daidalos came safe to Sicily, 
and there wrought many a wondrous work ; 
for he made for King Cocalos a reservoir, 
from which a great river watered ail the 
land, and a castle and a treasury on a 
mountain, which the giants themselves 
could not have stormed ; and in Selinos he 
took the steam which comes up from the 
fires of JEtna, and made of it a warm 
hath of vapor, to cure the pains of mortal 
men ; and he made a honeycomb of gold, 
in which the bees came and stored their 
honey, and in Egypt he made the fore- 
court of the temple of Hephaistos in 
Memphis, and a statue of himself within 
it, and many another wondrous work. 
And for Minos he made statues which 
spoke and moved, and the temple of Brito* 
martis, and the dancing-hall of Ariadne, 
which he carved of fair white stone. And 


THESEUS. 


291 


in Sardinia he worked for Xolaos, and in 
many a land beside, wandering up and 
down forever with his cunning, unlovely 
and accursed by men. 

But Theseus stood before Minos, and 
they looked each other in the face. And 
Minos bade take them to prison, and cast 
them to the monster one by one, that the 
death of Androgeos might be avenged. 
Then Theseus, cried, — 

“ A boon, O Minos. Let me be thrown 
first to the beast. For I came hither for 
that very purpose, of my own will, and 
not by lot” 

“ Who art thou, then, brave youth ? ” 

“ I am the son of him whom of all men 
thou hatest most, iEgeus the king of 
Athens, and I am come here to end this 
matter.” 

And Minos pondered awhile, looking 
steadfastly at him, and he thought, “ The 
lad means to atone by his own death for 


292 THE GREEK HEROES. 

his fathers sin ; ” and he answered at last 
mildly, — 

“ Go back in peace, my son. It is a pity 
that one so brave should die.” 

But Theseus said, “ I have sworn that 
I will not go back till I have seen the 
monster face to face.” 

And at that Minos frowned, and said, 
“ Then thou shalt see him ; take the mad- 
man away.” 

And they led Theseus away into the 
prison, with the other youths and maids. 

But Ariadne, Minos’s daughter, saw him, 
as she came out of her white stone hall ; 
and she loved him for his courage and 
his majesty, and said, “ Shame that such 
a youth should die ! ” And by night she 
went down to the prison, and told him all 
her heart ; and said, — 

“ Flee down to your ship at once, for I 
have bribed the guards before the door. 
Flee, you and all your friends, and go 


THESEUS. 


293 


back in peace to Greece ; and take me, 
take me with you ! for I dare not stay 
after you are gone; for my father will 
kill me miserably, if he knows what I 
have done. 1 ’ 

And Theseus stood silent awhile ; for he 
was astonished and confounded by her 
beauty : but at last he said, “ I cannot go 
home in peace, till I have seen and slain 
this Minotaur, and avenged the deaths of 
the youths and maidens, and put an end 
to the terrors of my land.” 

“ And will you kill the Minotaur ? How, 
then?” 

“ I know not, nor do I care : but he 
must be strong if he be too strong for 
me.” 

Then she loved him all the more, and 
said, “ But when you have killed him, how 
will you find your way out of the laby- 
rinth ? ” 

“ I know not, neither do I care ; but it 


294 THE GREEK HEROES. 

must be a strange road, if I do not find it 
out before I have eaten up the monster’s 

carcass.” 

Then she loved him all the more, and 
said, 

“ Fair youth, you are too bold ; but I 
can help you, weak as I am. I will give 
you a sword, and with that, perhaps, you 
may slay the beast ; and a clue of thread, 
and by that, perhaps, you may find your 
way out again. Only promise me, that if 
you escape safe, you will take me home 
with you to Greece; for my father will 
surely kill me, if he knows what I have 
done.” 

Then Theseus laughed, and said, “ Am 
I not safe enough now?” And he hid 
the sword in his bosom, and rolled up the 
clue in his hand ; and then he swore to 
Ariadne, and fell down before her, and 
kissed her hands and her feet; and she 
wept over him a long while, and then 


THESEUS. 


295 


went away; and Theseus lay down and 
slept sweetly. 

And when evening came, the guards 
came in and led him away to the laby- 
rinth. 

And he went down into that doleful 
gulf, through winding paths among the 
rocks, under caverns, and arches, and 
galleries, and over heaps of fallen stone. 
And he turned on the left hand, and on 
the right hand, and went up and down, 
till his head was dizzy ; but all the while 
he held his clue. For when he went in 
he had fastened it to a stone, and left it 
to unroll out of his hand as he went on ; 
and it lasted him till he met the Minotaur, 
in a narrow chasm between black cliffs. 

And when he saw him he stopped a- 
while, for he had never seen so strange 
a. beast. His body was a man’s ; but his 
head was the head of a bull ; and his 
teeth were the teeth of a lion ; and with 


296 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


them he tore his prey. And when he saw 
Theseus he roared, and put his head down, 
and rushed right at him. 

But Theseus stepped aside nimbly, and 
as he passed by, cut him in the knee ; and 
ere he could turn in the narrow path, he 
followed him, and stabbed him again and 
again from behind, till the monster fled 
bellowing wildly ; for he had never before 
felt a wound. And Theseus followed him 
at full speed, holding the clue of thread 
in his left hand. 

Then on, through cavern after cavern, 
under dark ribs of sounding stone, and up 
rough glens and torrent-beds, among the 
sunless roots of Ida, and to the edge of the 
eternal snow, went they, the hunter and 
the hunted, while the hills bellowed to the 
monster’s bellow. 

And at last Theseus came up with him, 
where he lay panting on a slab among the 
snow, and caught him by the horns, and 


THESEUS. 297 

forced his head back, and drove the keen 
sword through his throat. 

Then he turned, and went back limping 
and weary, feeling his way down by the 
clue of thread, till he came to the mouth 
of that doleful place ; and saw waiting for 
him, whom but Ariadne ! 

And he whispered, “ It is done ! ” and 
showed her the sword ; and she laid her 
finger on her lips, and led him to the 
prison, and opened the doors, and set all 
the prisoners free, while the guards lay 
sleeping heavily; for she had silenced 
them with wine. 

Then they fled to their ship together, 
and leapt on board, and hoisted up the 
sail ; and the night lay dark around them, 
so that they past through Minos’s ships, 
and escaped all safe to Naxos ; and there 
Ariadne became Theseus’s wife. 


PART IV. 


HOW THESEUS FELL BY HIS PRIDE. 

But that fair Ariadne never came to 
Athens with her husband. Some say that 
Theseus left her sleeping on Naxos among 
the Cyclades ; and that Dionusos the wine- 
king found her, and took her up into 
the sky, as you shall see some day in a 
painting of old Titian’s, one of the most 
glorious pictures upon earth. And some 
say that Dionusos drove away Theseus, 
and took Ariadne from him by force : but 
however that may be, in his haste or in 
his grief, Theseus forgot to put up the 
white sail. Now iEgeus his father sat 










mk f 

im 

JP* J 


THESEUS DROVE BACK THE FAMOUS AMAZONS. — F. 299 





THESEUS. 


299 


and watched on Sunium day after day, 
and strained his old eyes across the sea, 
to see the ship afar. And when he saw 
the black sail, and not the white one, he 
gave np Theseus for dead, and in his grief 
he fell into the sea, and died ; so it is called 
the iEgean to this day. 

And now Theseus was king of Athens, 
and he guarded it and ruled it well. 

For he killed the bull of Marathon, 
which had killed Androgeos, Minos’s son ; 
and he drove back the famous Amazons, 
the warlike women of the East, when they 
came from Asia, and conquered all Hellas, 
and broke into Athens itself. But Theseus 
stopped them there, and conquered them, 
and took Hippolute their queen to be his 
wife. Then he went out to fight against 
the Lapithai, and Peirithoos their famous 
king : but when the two heroes came face 
to face they loved each other, and embraced, 
and became noble friends ; so that the 


300 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


friendship of Theseus and Peirithoos is a 
proverb even now. And he gathered (so 
the Athenians say) all the boroughs of the 
land together, and knit them into one 
strong people, while before they were all 
parted and weak : and many another wise 
thing he did, so that his people honored 
him after he was dead, for many a hundred 
years, as the father of their freedom and 
their laws. And six hundred years after 
his death in the famous fight at Marathon, 
men said that they saw the ghost of The- 
seus, with his mighty brazen club, fighting 
in the van of battle against the invading 
Persians, for the country which he loved. 
And twenty years after Marathon, his 
bones (they say) were found in Scuros, an 
isle beyond the sea ; and they were bigger 
than the bones of mortal man. So the 
Athenians brought them home in triumph ; 
and all the people came out to welcome 
them; and they built over them a noble 


THESEUS. 


301 


temple, and adorned it with sculptures and 
paintings, in which were told all the noble 
deeds of Theseus, and the Centaurs, and 
the Lapithai, and the Amazons ; and the 
ruins of it are standing still. 

But why did they find his bones in 
Scuros ? Why did he not die in peace at 
Athens, and sleep by his father’s side? 
Because, after his triumph he grew proud, 
and broke the laws of God and man. 
And one thing worst of all he did, which 
brought him to his grave with sorrow. For 
he wunt down (they say beneath the earth) 
with that bold Peirithoos his friend, to help 
him to carry off Persephone, the queen of 
the world below. But Peirithoos was killed 
miserably, in the dark fire-kingdoms under 
ground; and Theseus was chained to a 
rock in everlasting pain. And there he 
sat for years, till Heracles the mighty came 
down to bring up the three-headed dog 
who sits at Pluto’s gate. So Heracles 


302 


THE GREEK HEROES. 


loosed him from his chain, and brought 
him up to the light once more. 

But when he came back his people had 
forgotten him, and Castor and Poludeuces, 
the sons of the wondrous Swan, had in- 
.vaded his land, and carried off his mother 
Aithra for a slave, in revenge for a griev- 
ous wrong. 

So the fair land of Athens was wasted, 
and another king ruled in it, who drove 
out Theseus shamefully, and he fled across 
the sea to Scuros. And there he lived in 
sadness, in the house of Lucomedes the 
king, till Lucomedes killed him by treach- 
ery, and there was an end of all his labors. 

So it is still, my children, and so it will 
be to the end. In those old Greeks, and in 
us also, all strength and virtue come from 
God. But if men grow proud and self- 
willed, and misuse God’s fair gifts, He lets 
them go their own ways, and fall pitifully, 
that the glory may be His alone. God 


Theseus. $03 

help us all, and give us wisdom, and 
courage to do noble deeds ! but God keep 
pride from us when we have done them, 
lest we fall, and come to shame ! 

THE END. 





































































































































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